From the Chairperson's Desk: December 2025

Dear Members and Stakeholders of the Western Cape Network on Disability,

Since our AGM on 30 September, the Network team has continued its work with commitment and energy. As 2025 draws to a close, I am pleased to update you on some of the progress made and changes that occurred during this period.

Newly elected governing board

Following our AGM in September, the new Governing Board met to elect new Office Bearers and the Executive Committee for the 2025–2027 term. I am proud to have been elected to the position of Chairperson, with Shelly Korn elected as Vice Chairperson and Rustim Ariefdien as Treasurer. Erica du Toit joins us as Secretary, and Lilley Berrington has been elected to the Executive after serving on the Board last year. We also welcome Notukela Makohliso, completing our Executive team.

New communication strategy

A significant change occurred when the Network and our long-term coordinator, Natalie Johnson, parted ways in May last year. Subsequently you may have noticed fewer emails from us — and that is by design. You shared that your inboxes were overloaded, and we listened.

While we have reduced email volume, the Network has experienced tremendous public visibility. Over the past six months, we have been featured across numerous media platforms, including radio interviews, newspaper articles, expert commentary, and press releases that helped bring disability issues to the forefront of public conversation. At the same time, we have strengthened our digital communication, sharing live updates in real time through Facebook and LinkedIn, and through our podcast, The Network Podcast. Our channels aim to keep you informed about Network initiatives and member activities, amplifying disability-related issues across the province.

Rebranding and a new digital platform

Work is well underway on the Network's new digital platform, website, and CRM system. Supported by NLC funding, this platform will modernise and simplify communication, membership management, and engagement.

Alongside the digital platform, we have begun refreshing the Network's corporate identity. This includes a new logo and updated visual identity that better reflects who we are: a modern, inclusive, responsive provincial disability network championing the rights of persons with disabilities.

Continued advocacy and sector leadership

This has been a period of significant internal change for the Network. At the same time, the external realities facing persons with disabilities remain unchanged, and in many areas increasingly urgent. The need for a strong, coordinated Network that can advocate, lobby, and champion the rights of persons with disabilities and the organisations that support them is as critical as ever.

Dial-a-Ride

Following the settlement agreement that prevented the reduction of the Dial-a-Ride service, the Network filed its founding affidavit on 10 October. We are asking the Court to prevent the proposed reduction of services, direct the City of Cape Town to increase Dial-a-Ride capacity, and require all spheres of government to jointly develop a plan for a universally accessible, integrated public transport system.

Petition to the Speaker of Parliament

On 3 December, fittingly on the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, the Network petitioned the Speaker of Parliament calling for amendments to the National Land Transport Act. Our aim is to ensure that universal access becomes a legal requirement for all public transport, supported by best-practice guidelines and enforceable sanctions for non-compliance. We anticipate engaging with the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee for Transport during the second quarter of 2026.

Transversal Committee on Universal Access

While the legal process around Dial-a-Ride continues, our engagement with the City remains constructive in other areas. On 4 December, Network representatives attended the quarterly meeting of the Transversal Committee on Universal Access, where discussions covered Universal Access in building design, renovations, and operational planning. The City increasingly seeks guidance from the Network on universal access considerations, a positive sign of growing recognition of our expertise and the value of lived experience and professional insight in accessibility planning. We also thank former Vice Chair Tania Melnyczuk for her powerful presentation on invisible disabilities and neurodivergence, which was well received.

Disability Rights Awareness Month

DRAM is always a busy period for the sector. Over recent weeks, the Network participated in or presented at the City of Cape Town's International Day for Persons with Disabilities, the National Library of South Africa's Awareness Day, the Western Cape Department of Health and Wellness Disability Forum, the SA Human Rights Commission Disability Awareness Event, the Western Cape Department of Social Development Disability Forum and its webinar on the employment of persons with disabilities, and multiple D20 workstream meetings. These engagements help ensure that the voices and rights of persons with disabilities are represented consistently across government and civil society spaces.

The highlights above reflect only a portion of the remarkable work carried out by the Network team, all of whom serve in a voluntary capacity. Their commitment and dedication ensure that disability rights remain visible, prioritised, and actively advanced across the Western Cape.

Thank you for your unwavering commitment to the disability sector, and for the vital role you play each day in improving the lives and upholding the rights of persons with disabilities.

Anthony Ghillino
Chairperson, Western Cape Network on Disability