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Decrease in deaths from child abuse and neglect in South Africa

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Decrease in deaths from child abuse and neglect in South Africa

Two National Surveys show decline over 8 years from 2009 to 2017

Introduction
Child abuse and neglect (CAN) has a lifelong impact on affected children, and each year many cases of CAN result in fatalities. In South Africa hardly a day passes without the media highlighting another case of a child being abducted or kidnapped and murdered, pointing to the very high rate of child murder in the country. The Gender & Health Research Unit of the South African Medical Research Council has been studying deaths from child abuse and neglect (CAN) since 2009, when its research showed that more than one child died every day in South Africa from CAN. This evidence brief summarises the findings of the second National Study of Child Murder which examined the killing of children in 2017 and it presents a comparison with the findings with those of 2009. In so doing, it seeks to address the key question: is there any evidence that the national efforts to combat child abuse and neglect in South Africa are having any impact on deaths of children from abuse and neglect?

View the complete Decrease in deaths from child abuse and neglect in South Africa Evidence Brief

View the article on TimesLive Website: Study suggests link between child support grant and drop in deadly abuse and neglect.

24 November 2022