According to the Social Development Department, this province, together with the Eastern Cape, Gauteng, Limpopo, KwaZulu-Natal, and the Western Cape have high numbers of applications that are yet to be processed by the department. 

Responding to the EFF's questions regarding children who need foster care and the department’s plans with unprocessed applications, Minister Lindiwe Zulu, in a written reply, said her department is working on redressing the situation. She indicated that the province had about 184 applications that were under investigation by September 2020.

Gauteng had the highest number at 4025, followed by the Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal. The Free State and the North West did not make the list of provinces with high numbers of backlogs.

Zulu has explained that challenges pertaining to the tracing of birth parents, outstanding birth certificates from the Home Affairs Department, and delays caused by the national Covid-19 lockdown are some of the reasons why there are high numbers of unprocessed applications.

“It is difficult to anticipate the date for finalisation of some cases since the department depends on other departments to finalise but efforts are made to fast-track the finalisation of cases in the best interest of the child.”

She has, however, also indicated that the department intends to have most foster care applications processed by the end of this month in the Northern Cape and KZN, while other provinces might be finalised before the end of the current financial year.

Meanwhile, civil society organisations have called on Zulu to introduce a Child Support Grant top-up for orphans in the care of extended family, stating that this would play a vital role in addressing the foster care backlog and reducing social workers’ workload.

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