Question NW4167 to the Minister of Basic Education

Reply:

Yes, the Department of Basic Education (DBE) does have functional agreements in addressing bullying and substance abuse amongst adolescents in schools. These agreements are as follows:
1. Inter-Departmental Campaign on the Prevention of Violence, Bullying, Corporal Punishment, Gender-Based Violence, Teenage Pregnancy, Drugs and Substance Abuse.

The Department and its partner Departments: Social Development, Justice and Constitutional Development, Correctional Services, Health, Communications and Digital Technologies, Home Affairs, the Presidency and the South African Police Service have embarked on an Inter-Departmental Campaign on Violence Prevention.

This Campaign raises awareness on issues such as the prevention of bullying, corporal punishment, gender-based violence, teenage pregnancy, drugs and substance abuse in schools. The Campaign has been championed by the Deputy Minister of Basic Education and supported by other Deputy Ministers from the above-mentioned partner departments, and Executive Mayors. Additionally, it has also targeted districts with high levels of crime and violence known as hot spots throughout various provinces. The Campaign is also rolled out through a jamboree of career choices provided by various higher learning institutions (e.g Universities, T-VET Colleges and SETAs) and build up events that take groups of learners through priority content areas related to violence prevention; including bullying and substance abuse.

To date, the Campaign has been rolled out in six provinces such as Gauteng (Gauteng West District), Limpopo (Sekhukhune East District), Mpumalanga (Nkangala District) and the North-West (Dr Kenneth Kaunda District), as well as Eastern Cape (Nelson Mandela District) and KwaZulu-Natal (Pinetown District). In the new financial year of 2024, the Department plans to roll out the Campaign in the outstanding provinces, Free State, Northern Cape and Western Cape.

2. Partnership Protocol between the Department of Basic Education and the South African Police Service (SAPS)

The Department has an established Protocol with SAPS to address crime and violence in schools, including drugs and substance abuse. The Protocol has enabled all schools to be linked to their local police stations. SAPS conduct searches and seizures in schools and also coordinate crime awareness campaigns in schools. Regularly, searches and seizures of illegal drugs and dangerous weapons are done in schools, as well as crime awareness campaigns discouraging gangsterism, bullying and theft amongst the adolescent.

3. Cyberbullying and Online Safety awareness campaigns in schools

The Department has an established relationship with the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies and the Films and Publication Board in conducting awareness campaigns on cyberbullying and online safety in schools including alerting the learners about online child sexual grooming, human trafficking, classification of content, exposure to adult online content and digital footprint through social media, as well as encouraging them to be good digital citizens. The FPB has used its Online Safety Youth Council Members, made up of 11 young people from the ages of 13 to 21 years old in conducting peer to peer awareness dialogues in schools. The awareness campaigns have reached various schools nationwide in 2023 and will continue to be implemented in 2024.

4. Central Drug Authority in addressing substance abuse.

The DBE serves on the board of the Central Drug Authority (CDA), which is a coordinating structure set up by the Department of Social Development to coordinate the implementation of the National Drug Master Plan 2019-2024, on addressing substance abuse in the country, by various departments.  The CDA comprises of officials from civil society organisations and departments such as Health, Higher Education, Justice and Constitutional Development, Correctional Services, as well as National Treasury. Through the CDA, the Department continues to implement its National Strategy for the Prevention and Management of Alcohol and Drug Use Amongst Learners in Schools. Its approach is not a punitive one, instead it is restorative.  Schools are required to do the following to curb alcohol and drug use of learners:

• Establish school-based support teams;
• Establish or strengthen referral systems (e.g rehabilitation centres, social workers);
• Implement drug testing in schools;
• Implement Curriculum on drugs and substance abuse through the Life Orientation subject.

In terms of training on the National Strategy; provinces and districts continue to re-train schools.  This training is predominately intergraded with the training on the National School Safety Framework. Drug testing is at the centre of the training on the National Strategy for the Prevention and Management of Alcohol and Drug Use Amongst Learners in Schools.

 

1. National Technical Intersectoral Committee on Child Justice

The DBE serves on the National Technical Intersectoral Committee on Child Justice (ISCCJ), which is mandated to implement the Child Justice Act of 2008 nationwide, and manage children in conflict with the law.  The ISCCJ is championed by the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development and supported by other departments and entities such as Social Development, Health, National Prosecuting Authority and SAPS. The DBE facilitates the provision of teaching and learning services in 34 Child and Youth Care Centres nationwide, as means to ensure the learners acquire skills, while DSD provides substance abuse and psychosocial support programmes in these centres, as means to rehabilitate the learners.