Overview of Established Anti-Crime Initiatives

[Last Updated : 21 April 2009]

Background to the Step Change - How the Step Change Initiative Started

The initiative directed towards achieving a ‘Step Change’ in the fight against crime was set in motion by former President Thabo Mbeki at the 25 August 2006 Big Business Working Group (BBWG) meeting following a deterioration in the levels of crime during the first half of 2006, particularly in high profile, organised and contact crime, accompanied by high levels of violence.

The former President agreed to the reinvigoration of the existing public private partnership against crime expressed through Business Against Crime South Africa. Further, it was acknowledged that the crime challenge was so serious that it required what was termed a “step change” in the way the Criminal Justice System addressed crime – a totally new level of political will, commitment and prioritisation. In this regard, it was noted that the role of leadership of the Justice Crime Prevention and Security (JCPS) Cluster and the individual Departments, both political and officials, would be critical.

Since then, both Government and business leaders have engaged constructively on the crime challenges, and initiated a number of Work Groups focused on specific issues.

The Strategic Framework of the Step Change / Priority Anti-Crime Initiative

A strategic framework has been designed for the specific purpose of the Step Change Initiative - Priority Anti-Crime Initiative, having the following core principles as a base:

• The fundamental responsibility lies with Government to provide a safe and secure environment for citizens and businesses within South Africa;
• Partnerships between Government and business and between Government and civil society are necessary and critical in the national effort to bring down the unacceptably high levels of crime and violence;
• The business sector is able to make a valuable contribution in supporting Government to combat crime, by applying new thinking about the solutions, sharing and transfer of knowledge to implement solutions, and the development of skills and capacity through a Public Private Partnership (established through Business Against Crime South Africa).