Tshepo Sefotlhelo from the Gender-Based Violence Response Fund (The Fund)

First Thing is First | Concerns are constantly being raised over abuse and violence of children as the first term of school kicks off. Some learners, instead of sharing in the back-to-school excitement, are faced with the chilling reality of abuse and violence in our schools. Since the beginning of this year, there have already been a series of reports of abuse of children, including the currently running sex ring case, involving minors - which demonstrates the urgency to tackle all these forms of abuse of children.   Regular reports of bullying, corporal punishment, assault, grooming, and physical abuse in schools are alarming. Female learners, mainly, are subjected to violence on a massive scale in schools, perpetrated by either male peers or by teachers. Abuse takes on many forms. According to crime statistics generated by the South African Police Services (SAPS), 74% of students have reported being hit at school, while 41% have been bullied. Overall, 32% of learners report that they feel unsafe at school. The latest Statistics SA research reveals shocking realities concerning the abuse of girls. Between March 2021 and April 2022, 90 037 girls between the ages of 10 and 19 gave birth. Those are children who should be attending school. A shocking reality is that over 160 of the sexual misconduct cases reported between 2020 and 2021 were perpetrated by teachers. Even more worrying is the fact that more than 65% of primary school-aged children are reported to have used violence themselves in school, according to statistics from the SAPS. Currently, Police have launched an investigation into an incident in which a man was gunned down at the Kagiso secondary school, west of Johannesburg. The police spokesperson Dimakatso Sello says the man entered the school and held some staff members hostage after which one of the teachers shot him ...   Guest: Tshepo Sefotlhelo from the Gender-Based Violence Response Fund (The Fund) - which was launched by President Cyril Ramaphosa in 2021 as a funding vehicle to tackle gender-based violence in South Africa)