iSIQALO

In our patriarchal society, Social Workers, Auxiliary Social Workers and Victim-Empowerment Counsellors are part of key support systems to our communities. The iSIQALO professional development programmes enable them to reflect on personal and professional values and experiences, to challenge the status-quo on gender equity and strengthen comprehensive sexuality education as a strategic response to the prevention and management of Gender-Based Violence and the prevention of teenage pregnancy.  Up to date 4019 Social Work Professionals have been trained in rural sites in Limpopo, KwaZulu-Natal and in Gauteng in South Africa and in Lilongwe and Blantyre in Malawi. Today, the iSIQALO II programme has been accredited with 25 CPD points with the South African Council for Social Service Professions.

The iSIQALO I programme focuses on standardising the quality of services offered to girl children across Gauteng. It empowers social workers with tools to protect rights, build life skills, and support holistic growth. Training takes place through interactive workshops, role-playing and skill modelling, helping professionals engage with the girl child not as a victim, but as a dignified and capable individual.

The iSIQALO II programme builds on this by focusing on the professional and personal development of Social Service Practitioners in comprehensive sexuality education. Practitioners are guided to reflect on their own biases, express and manage their feelings, and take ownership of their behaviours. This process strengthens self-confidence and prepares them to deliver sexuality education ethically, within a human rights framework, leading to improved service delivery.

In 2025, Valued Citizens Initiative also introduced the Cheal Trauma Debriefing and Counseling Programme to prioritise the wellbeing of Social Work Professionals, many of whom entered the field as survivors of sexual violence themselves. The programme offers short-term counselling sessions and a one-day retreat, equipping practitioners with tools for healing, resilience, and coping with trauma. Delivered by experienced Psychosocial Practitioners, it supports self-discovery, emotional recovery, and healthier ways of working in demanding environments.

Counseling services are delivered by experienced Psychosocial Practitioners, trained in trauma debriefing and counseling frameworks. Their interventions draw on a blend of theoretical approaches tailored to each client’s specific needs and context. The counselling process emphasises:

  • Providing support and validation of emotional responses,
  • Facilitating safe expression of feelings,
  • Exploring the effects of trauma and individual reactions,
  • Normalising emotional responses to reduce distress, and
  • Developing coping strategies to manage triggers, behaviors, and emotions.
This is what the clients had to say about the One-Day Retreat:

“I had an opportunity to remember the Self in me”

“This was a self-discovery journey”

“Connecting through selflessness”

“The ISIQALO Camp programme was very good we need this kind of programmes as Social Service Practitioners. It was very vital as it has given us a chance to reflect on our profession and to check if we are really doing what we pledged when we graduate, are we giving our communities the best we can in order to address the social issues that are within our communities.”

“Personally, I feel that the iSIQALO camp was refreshing, capacitating and recharging. I feel so recharged to face my clients. 90% of the camp was really fulfilling and I will definitely recommend the programme to my colleagues as I do not want to leave anyone behind says the theme of 2022 world social work day.”

iSIQALO training has made us realize how our experiences are there to help us develop for the better and how we are able to achieve our full potential while rendering services to families and vulnerable children”.

Sara Tshamano Molea

Social Worker March 2020

iSIQALO professional development enabled me to do self-identification, self-reflection, self-acknowledgement, self-care and self-understanding of my experience this is key in the helping profession as from my personal experience I see the world.

Vanessa Naidoo

Social Worker March 2020

Through iSIQALO Professional development, we were made aware how ‘art’ can help our clients regain their sense of self particularly those who have suffered severe trauma and have not been able to speak out.

Vuyelwa Mbonyane

Social Worker Krugersdorp

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