International Day of Families As part of global efforts to promote social progress, International Day of Families raises awareness of family issues and the need to strengthen family well-being and cohesion.

According to Girls & Boys Town, referencing the World Family Map, South Africa is a global outlier – around 30% of children live in households without either parent, 30% with both parents and the rest with one parent, usually the mother.

These patterns reflect the complexity of family life in South Africa, where many children are raised by grandmothers or aunts, and families are often divided between urban and rural homes.

Importantly, Girls & Boys Town notes that extended family networks, though spread across distances, can still provide children with the care, stability and resources they need to thrive.

What matters most is not the physical structure of the household, but the quality of relationships and consistent support.

While democracy brought hope that apartheid-era policies like the migrant labour system and pass laws would no longer separate families, economic realities continue to drive parents – especially breadwinners – away from home in search of work.

Many remain emotionally and materially connected to their families, despite the physical distance.

The South African government in the last decades has, however, been more responsive to the fact that families come in all their shapes and sizes. The child support grant can be paid to anyone who is looking after the child, with no assumption that it should be the biological mother.

Source: “Weekly Wrap: Designing for Dignity – 16 May 2025”. Published via Mailchimp. https://mailchi.mp/a527d6c01bcf/weekly-wrap-designing-for-dignity-16-may-2025