NICRO Annual Report 2002-2003

Fayruz Davids Provincial Director

Diversion

Diversion service deliverers worked hard at streamlining The Journey Programme during the reporting period, and it has now evolved into an extremely effective and successful means of intervention for high-risk juvenile offenders. Such has been our progress that we offered the first outdoor adventure component without EDUCO Africa's involvement in August 2002. This development means that we are now in a position to reduce costs, and have the necessary in-house expertise to offer skills training to other provinces and adapt the wilderness therapy component for utilisation in domestic violence interventions.

NICRO Western Cape no longer assumes responsibility for direct service delivery of the SAYSTOP programme for young sex offenders, and it has taken on its new role as mentor and trainer. The organization continues to form an integral part of the SAYSTOP consortium and serves on the steering committee, which deals with the overall management of the programme.

Diversion services have become more accessible in terms of their geographical and cultural distribution. During the review period youth from the Cape Flats and rural magisterial districts within our area of operation were specifically targeted. The Diversion Programme was revived in Wellington and along the West Coast YES programmes are now operating in Piketberg, Hopetown and Saldanha. PTCS assessments have been conducted on a bi-weekly basis at the Simonstown Court since October 2002, affording clients from Fish Hoek, Ocean View and surrounding areas far greater accessibility to this service. Clients from Khayelitsha and the immediate surrounds no longer have to travel to Mitchells Plain as they are serviced from the Khayelitsha Court where we now have an office. The YES programme is scheduled to commence shortly in Athlone and Ocean View.

Economic Opportunities Project

The vast majority of EOP participants - some 90% - who completed the entrepreneurial training programme and were empowered with the required skills and knowledge, succeeded in establishing their own micro enterprises with NICRO'swith NICRO's support

A total of 266 new jobs were created for beneficiaries who were previously unemployed

77 clients were able to access client loans to help establish or improve their small businesses.

Offender Reintegration

In October 2002 the first provincial Creative Arts event was held in partnership with the Department of Correctional Services. The Tough Enough Programme has continue to make good progress. In the past year 246 prospective participants from four prisons, three of which are in rural areas, were recruited. Of these 121 clients were assessed and 212 completed the programme.

The bus service ensured that 4 561 family members of offenders in eight prisons in the Western Cape had contact with their loved ones. This service has proved invaluable and goes a long way towards facilitating the reintegration of offenders upon their release.

Community Victim Support

The number of survivors of crime and violence to whom services were rendered increased by 43% to 8 859 in comparison to the previous reporting period

The vast majority of crimes committed against victims (67%) involved domestic violence, rape or attempted rape and sexual abuse or indecent assault; other crimes were negligible in comparison

The primary beneficiaries of victim support services were women (82%)

Cultural profile: African Coloured - 77%; African Black - 18%; African White - 3%; African Asian - 1%

		Individual	Workshops	Total
	CVS	8859	2002	10861
	DIV	3441	655	4096
	OR	1189	670	1859
	EOP	903	187	1090
	Total	14392	3514	17906