Children’s Month launched with focus on issues faced by kids

The whole of November has been dedicated to ensuring that various issues faced by children are tackled and prioritised.

This came out during the launch of Children’s Month by the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund and the Department of Social Development in Saxonwold, Johannesburg.

This year’s theme is “Safe to Play. Free to Thrive” and is said to focus beyond ceremonial speeches but geared towards addressing the physical environments children navigate daily.

The focus this year is on the persistent challenges facing children which includes violence, poverty and a lack of safe recreational infrastructure.

Karl Muller is from the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund, “Today is going to be about listening to young people, the theme for the month is safe to play and free to thrive and when we talk about thriving. We’re not only talking about physical safety but we talk about psychological safety as well. So, we’ll get feedback session from the chairperson of the children’s summit, from the children’s G20 group and other structures within the organisation. We as adults are going to hear from children what makes them feel safe.”

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— SABC News (@SABCNews) February 14, 2026