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In Rustenburg, the Do More Foundation is supporting a growing network of enterprise development programmes that offer women and youth tangible pathways into the economy. These are not short-term projects, but long-term investments in people , building the kinds of skills, confidence, and resilience that underpin sustainable livelihoods.

Through partnership with Pepkor Speciality, we’re able to drive programmes that directly respond to the lived realities of people in under-resourced communities in Rusteburg. These initiatives are part of a broader model.

With Niya Consultancy as the implementing partner, Pepkor Speciality’s contributions enable a range of programmes, including the Township Economy Project, the Sewing Programme, and the #DoMorePlay Toy initiative, to take root and grow. Niya Consulting serves as the implementing partner for these programmes in Rustenburg, bringing deep local knowledge and expertise to the design and delivery of enterprise development initiatives. Their hands-on facilitation ensures that each programme is responsive to community needs and achieves meaningful, measurable impact.

The Worcester Technical Task Team has achieved a significant policy victory, culminating in the development and near completion of the Breede Valley Municipality (BVM) Early Childhood Development (ECD) Policy in the Western Cape. This initiative, spearheaded by the Worcester technical task team with support from Real Reform, represents a crucial step in strengthening the local ECD ecosystem and lays a foundational blueprint for all stakeholders involved. There were various stakeholders involved such as ECD forum leads, Department of Health (DoH), Department of Social Development (DSD), Department of Education (DoE) and municipal departments.

Since 2022, the Early Care Foundation (ECF) has supported the coordination of a collective forum in Rustenburg focused on the wellbeing and services of children aged 0–5. Two key spaces include: the Young Child Forum, an inclusive platform for sharing knowledge and experiences with local ECD principals and local organizations with young children and a Technical Committee, where planning, coordination, and alignment take place between key partners in the early childhood development (ECD) space such as government departments like Department of Basic Education and NGOS working in the area. Drawing from participatory governance and systems change theory, they serve as sites of relational accountability, where organisations align around a shared purpose.

Co-authored by the DO MORE FOUNDATION and ACFS

In many parts of South Africa, the earliest years of a child’s life unfold in spaces full of love but short on support. For families living in under-resourced communities, access to quality early learning isn’t just limited. It’s often entirely out of reach. Centres are too far. Fees are too high. Resources are too few. And caregivers? Often left doing their best with very little.

But in Randfontein, something different is happening - something rooted in community and growing quietly, powerfully, from the inside out.

The ACFS Resource Hub Model, supported by the DO MORE FOUNDATION and made possible through the generous support of Siqalo, is one such response. It’s not a silver bullet, and it doesn’t promise quick fixes. But what it does offer is something rare: a locally grown, practical model that gives ECD practitioners real tools to do what they’ve always wanted to do - nurture young minds, with confidence, creativity and care.

What is a birth certificate, and why is it important?

A birth certificate is an official document that proves a person’s birth and provides their basic information. It is a child’s first official record of existence, confirming their identity, age, and nationality. In South Africa, this document is important for children because it offers legal proof of identity and citizenship, which are essential for accessing basic rights and services. Without it, children may face difficulties in getting healthcare, enrolling in school, receiving social assistance such as the child support grant, or being protected under the law. According to Hall, Almeleh, Giese, Mphaphuli, Slemming, Mathys., et al (2024), a birth certificate is an enabling document, a gateway to a range of critical services that support children in reaching their developmental potential.

The National Integrated Early Childhood Development Policy (2015) recognises that every child should have the opportunity to access early learning, care, and support from birth. However, formal ECD centres require birth certificates for registration and subsidy, which can be a challenge for children who are undocumented.

In South Africa, the early childhood development (ECD) conversation is still largely dominated by centre-based models. Yet in communities like Molteno in the Eastern Cape (where infrastructure is limited, poverty is entrenched, and many families live far from any formal care facilities) this approach leaves too many young children behind.

According to South Africa’s 2022 ECD Census, only 35% of children aged 0–5 attend any form of non-school ECD programme on a given day. This means that approximately 65%, or around 2.26 million young children, do not have access to structured early learning opportunities. For many of these children, particularly in rural areas like Molteno, the absence of nearby centres, infrastructure constraints, and economic hardship all contribute to the systemic exclusion from early learning. The result? Children enter the school system developmentally unprepared - not because of an innate learning disability, but because the system itself has created barriers to their development.

This is the gap that the Khululeka Family Home Visiting Programme (funded by RCL FOODS' corporate social investment) was designed to fill.