The National Department of Social Development has set aside just under half a billion rands to assist struggling early childhood development centres in Gauteng.
The amount will be used to cushion the impact of COVID-19 on Early Childhood Development (ECD). The department said an amount of R496 million will be used to assist the sector, which is amongst the hardest
hit by the pandemic.
In a statement issued, the allocation, known as the Early Childhood Development Stimulus Relief Fund (ECD-ESRF), is part of sustaining and creating employment opportunities in the sector, considering the high unemployment rate and job losses occasioned by the pandemic.
"In response to the President's call, the National Department of Social Development developed and submitted a project proposal to National Treasury to access funding from the Presidential Employment Stimulus package for the ECD sector.
"The proposal focused on four interrelated policy imperatives including employment protection in theMECD sector, employment creation, containing the spread of COVID-19, and registration rollout for ECD programmes," the department said.
Through the ECD-ESRF, ECDs will be better placed to survive the risk of permanent closure, and will be able to cover financial costs, including the payment of employees' salaries.
The national department, supported by its provincial departments, including the South African Social Service Agency (SASSA), the National Development Agency (NDA), DG Murray Trust, GOVchat and the ECD Inter-Sect oral Forum, together with other stakeholders, has been hard at work to develop a digital application platform and the rollout plan.