​The Gauteng Provincial Government (GPG) has identified homelessness as a priority issue that needs urgent attention. As a result, the provincial government provided a number of services to homeless people as part of World Homelessness Day across all the five regions. 
The most recent commemoration took place at Wembley Stadium, Turffontein in the Johannesburg Region on Tuesday under the theme: WE ARE NOT LEAVING ANYONE BEHIND. 

During the event, a former homeless and beneficiary of the department’s programme, Nkosinathi Ndlovu gave a testimony on how the government restored hope to him.

He said, “I am grateful to the Gauteng Government for being the caring government. I am a beneficiary from Ikusasalethu for Homeless People funded by the Gauteng Department of Social Development. At the Centre, we are provided with skills training that will enable us to be independent”.

“I would like to challenge all the beneficiaries to ensure that we make our social workers proud by utilising the exit plan they give us. Remember the good things out of hardships in life. When the government removed us from the streets, we were hopeless but now we have positive lives, one day we will exit and have our own homes. I commend Ikusasalethu management and Gauteng Government”, Ndlovu said. 

The Department’s Johannesburg Region Community Development Work Supervisor, Pamela Chauke, giving a message of hope to the beneficiaries said, “I am from Sustainable Livelihood Unit. We are funding NPOs to offer skills development. We link our beneficiaries with various employers. We aim to ensure that you sustain yourselves. We have life, technical and business skills. We want to produce businesspeople amongst you. We want you to become an employee. It will only happen only if you are willing to turn your lives around. We want to develop you and remember that you get these safe kills at no cost.” 

The growing number of street homeless people has been a cause for concern for the Gauteng City Region, it was further exacerbated by COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, Gauteng Government recently launched the Gauteng Homeless Shelters Forum to improve performance at homeless shelters. It will also serve as a platform to tackle challenges at those shelters.