Gauteng completes 21 GBVF directives ahead of municipal handover

With more than 6.7 million registered voters heading to the polls in Gauteng over the next three days, Premier Panyaza Lesufi has urged incoming municipal leadership to maintain the province’s efforts to tackle gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF).

The appeal comes as the Gauteng Provincial Government reveals that only 21 of the 67 directives issued as part of its response to President Cyril Ramaphosa’s instructions on GBVF have been fully completed. A further 38 are still underway, while eight have yet to get off the ground.

The update comes just over a month after Ramaphosa addressed the nation on 29 September, calling for urgent action following the deaths of several women in Ekurhuleni.

The President issued four directives, including a national drive to resolve outstanding murder, attempted murder, rape and serious sexual offence cases involving women and children; reduce forensic backlogs; conduct municipal safety audits in high-risk areas; and strengthen the enforcement of liquor laws to address alcohol-related violence.

Speaking during the provincial briefing on Sunday, Lesufi said incoming municipal administrations would be expected to continue implementing the plan, warning that there should be no further delays.

“The current terms of all municipalities have come to an end, with new municipalities expected probably a week after the voting has concluded on Wednesday. We hope and believe that the new municipalities will be infused in this strategy, and there will not be further delays, as we want to meet the targets that have been set by the President,” Lesufi said.

The provincial government says it moved quickly after Ramaphosa’s announcement, convening an intergovernmental meeting on 2 October involving provincial leaders, executive mayors, municipal managers and national ministers.

The meeting translated the President’s four directives into a provincial action plan, with a fifth priority added to strengthen shelters and support services for survivors.

Under the plan, Lesufi said additional resources had been directed to ten police stations recording the highest numbers of rape cases. These include Rietgat, Alexandra, Mamelodi, Diepsloot, Ivory Park, Dobsonville, Midrand and Tembisa.

The province also planned to deploy 1,022 GBV response teams across 122 high-risk areas, with 56 social workers included in the intervention. Other measures include strengthening seven specialised Sexual Offences Courts and 144 victim-friendly facilities, as well as involving all 19 medical-legal clinics to help protect forensic evidence.

Lesufi said reported cases had declined at the police stations following the implementation of the plan.

On case recovery, the province says crime kits were collected from Thuthuzela Care Centres across all five districts and submitted to the Forensic Science Laboratory for processing.

Investigating officers have been instructed to take crime kits to medical examinations to ensure evidence is not left behind and to avoid unnecessary delays.

Lesufi said further interventions were aimed at reducing forensic waiting lists, recovering missing dockets and improving the monitoring of missing-persons cases.

An Identification Task Team has been established to conduct a digital fingerprint audit of unidentified women and children.

Priority DNA and forensic samples linked to rape and murder cases involving women and children have also been secured for focused attention.

However, the baseline assessment of forensic backlogs, age profiling and costed plans to reduce outstanding work remain among the deliverables still being addressed.

The premier says municipal safety audits have also made progress, with seven critical tasks completed.

In Johannesburg, major risk areas have been mapped, while ten previously hijacked or illegally occupied buildings have been identified for possible public reuse. However, a recent protest by the South African Municipal Workers’ Union (SAMWU) has delayed certain aspects of the operation.

In Tshwane, overgrown vegetation around high-risk transport stations has been cleared, while Ekurhuleni has inspected taxi ranks and identified broken CCTV systems requiring repairs.

Lesufi also confirmed that safety audits across most municipalities are between 60% and 80% complete.

The provincial government says urgent hazards identified through the audits must either be repaired or included in funded action plans within 90 days. Detailed audit findings are also expected to be made public.

On alcohol-related violence, authorities have conducted 7,322 liquor outlet inspections, resulting in 20 closures, 459 non-compliance notices and 566 referrals to the Liquor Inspectorate for further inspections.

A further 41 joint enforcement operations have been conducted, with the outstanding interventions targeting unlicensed outlets, repeat offenders and businesses trading beyond permitted hours.

The province has also outlined its support for survivors, including 18 shelters offering 363 beds, seven Thuthuzela Care Centres and expanded psychosocial services.

Visible policing has intensified in high-risk areas, technical issues with the e-Panic Button application have been resolved, and integrated CCTV networks have been expanded.

Despite these interventions, the provincial government acknowledges that forensic backlogs, outstanding case recovery information and the pace of municipal safety audits remain challenges.

With municipal leadership set to change following Wednesday’s elections, Lesufi says the priority is to ensure incoming administrations maintain the momentum and complete the outstanding work.

[IN PICTURES] : Media briefing on the province’s progress in responding to gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF).

#GrowingASaferGauteng https://t.co/we7eROSi2D

— Gauteng Provincial Gov (@GautengProvince) November 1, 2026

As we step into a new month, remember: no one deserves abuse, regardless of age, gender or circumstances.Speak up, protect one another, respect boundaries and never normalise violence. Let November be a month of safety, dignity, love and zero tolerance for GBV.
#EndGBV

— Miss EGBE EBOB SANDRAROSE 🇨🇲 (@SandyRoseegbe51) November 2, 2026