South Africa needs urgent action to confront child abuse, exploitation and teenage pregnancy, Social Development Minister Sisisi Tolashe said as she launched Child Protection Month in eDumbe, KwaZulu-Natal, on Sunday.
She called the situation a national disgrace and urged government, communities and faith groups to work together to protect children from harm.
Recent quarterly crime statistics and the National Child Protection Register confirm a worrying spike in reported abuse cases.
The painful numbers
According to the National Child Protection Register, first to third quarter statistics for the 2025-26 financial year show the recorded 8,984 cases of child abuse, with 3 258 sexual abuse cases.
The Department of Justice’s statistical records show an increase in statutory rape to 199 for the 2025-26 financial year compared to 127 in the 2024-25 financial year.
Cases involving children committing statutory rape are also a concern, with 22 reported cases, while 890 children were reported as perpetrators of rape. A further 129 cases involved victims under the age of 18.
In KwaZulu-Natal alone, 375 children between the ages of 10 and 14 fell pregnant during the third quarter of 2025-26, she said.
Despite these high figures, recent health data indicate a slight drop in the overall adolescent birth rate across South Africa.
Civil society groups like Section27 and Equal Education believe the numbers remain critically high due to limited access to reproductive healthcare and comprehensive sexuality education.
Government to change law to address pregnancies among pupils
In a move to address the expulsion and stigma faced by pregnant schoolgirls, Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube unveiled the draft Regulations on Management of Learner Pregnancy.
Current policy allows schools to discourage or temporarily prevent mothers from returning to school immediately, leading to high drop-out rates.
Gwarube noted that the country is finally moving away from a period where “young girls were expelled or forced out of school due to pregnancy”, practices she noted “contributed to alarmingly high dropout rates”.
Children’s safety prioritised over harmful practices
Tolashe emphasised that the government will intervene when cultural or religious practices endanger children.
She cited the recent removal of 19 children from the Ikhaya Labafundi Mission as an example of the state’s commitment to constitutional rights.
The government protects the right to practise faith but prioritises child safety above all else.
Authorities will act without “fear or favour” when religious leaders violate the Children’s Act, she said.
Speak up parents
Tolashe warned parents against accepting compensation after a pregnancy in the form of money or livestock to conceal sexual crimes.
Tolashe urged communities to stop shielding perpetrators and to utilise the protections offered by the constitution.
She pointed to 30 years of progress, including expanded child grants and strengthened legislation like the Child Justice Act, as tools to fight this “battle of a different kind”.
Local activists continue to echo her call, stressing that poverty should never justify the concealment of child abuse.
