President Cyril Ramaphosa has called for a bold, coordinated, and community-driven approach to crime-fighting, describing policing in South Africa as being at a crossroads that demands urgent reform and collaboration from across all sectors of society.
The President was delivering the keynote address at the 2025 Policing Summit held in Ekurhuleni on Tuesday.
President Ramaphosa applauded the Ministry of Police for convening what he termed a “critical” gathering, which brings together government, civil society, business, interfaith groups, labour, and communities to reshape the country’s safety and security strategy.
“Safeguarding our nation’s safety and security requires that we are proactive, innovative and solution-oriented in our approach… Just as crime is an all-of-society problem, overcoming crime must be an all-of-society effort.
“In doing so, we must marshall our full support behind the hardworking men and women of the South African Police Service,” the President said.
The President said crime has a direct impact on the economy, as it discourages investment, disrupts business activity and leads to increased security costs for companies.
He noted that social ills such as poverty and inequality, unemployment, lack of opportunity, patriarchy and misogyny, and broken family structures are just some of the issues that contribute to crime and criminality.
“Addressing crime without understanding its root causes is like a doctor treating a patient for a fever without diagnosing the underlying illness.
“It is therefore encouraging that this summit has as one of its key objectives adopting a more holistic approach to law-enforcement, encompassing not just the police but the entire policing system,” the President said.
The President emphasised that policing must be grounded in the Batho Pele principles of service delivery, which include respect, empathy, accessibility, and accountability.
He said that the policing terrain of today is complex and multi-faceted and the police strive to fulfil their mandate in the context of emerging threats.
These threats, he said, include transnational organised crime, illegal mining, extortion syndicates, the theft of economic infrastructure, money laundering and terror financing.
“And yet, even in this extremely challenging environment, the South African Police Service continues to register successes in fighting crime in its various operations,” the president said.
Restoring public trust
The President warned that restoring public trust in the police is critical to winning the fight against crime.
“We need to improve the relationships between the police and the communities they serve. We need to work to improve the morale of SAPS members, many of whom are battling heavy workloads, insufficient resources and outdated systems.
“Even as the SAPS budget has increased over the past ten years, the reality is that the number of police personnel has been declining while the country’s population has been growing,” the President said.
President Ramaphosa stressed that policing cannot succeed without the active involvement of communities.
He called for a stronger role for Community Policing Forums (CPFs), citizen empowerment, and partnerships with the private sector, which has already played a crucial role in equipping victim support centres and bolstering frontline capacity.
“We know that communities are the most potent resource for fighting crime. Crimes happen in communities and criminals are often known to communities.
“From this summit we need a clear plan on how to better involve communities in crime prevention and detection, and on harnessing the potential of CPFs in line with relevant legislation and regulations,” he said.
The role of technology and data
The President welcomed and backed the focus of the summit on exploring the role of technology in modern policing, investigation and intelligence.
“We need to harness modern technologies to support crime-fighting. Technology is particularly crucial when analysing crime trends and patterns. It is also valuable in empowering citizens,” President Ramaphosa said.
He further advocated for applying a socio-economic lens to crime data to better tailor responses for example, by examining links between substance abuse and robbery, or alcohol abuse and gender-based violence.
“Data plays a pivotal role in policing and law-enforcement. And we need to apply a socio-economic lens when analysing such data. The data may tell us, for example, about a community with a high prevalence of housebreaking and robbery, in which substance abuse is also rife.
“Understanding the connections revealed by this data should inform the approach to policing in that community. There is ample data on the linkages between alcohol abuse and the prevalence of gender-based violence,” the President said.
He added that a holistic policing approach would, for example, need to involve working with local authorities to enforce municipal by-laws for establishments selling alcohol.
As part of facilitating access to SAPS services, the President said it is encouraging that discussions are planned for how to leverage innovative digital platforms such as mobile apps, online reporting systems and virtual communication channels to improve the public’s interaction with the police.
“To turn the tide against crime, we need better collaboration among the different agencies in the law-enforcement space,” he said.
The President further highlighted that there is a proliferation of organised crime in South Africa, including the manufacture of illicit drugs, kidnapping for ransom and money laundering.
He said this is taking place alongside a growth in illegal mining, extortion in the construction sector, and the theft of public infrastructure.
Addressing corruption
The President urged police to stay away from corrupt activities, stressing that corruption has infiltrated every part of society, including the SAPS.
He said while prosecuting corrupt officers is important, it is equally crucial to instil a culture of honesty and integrity within the police service.
The President emphasised the need to strengthen the fundamentals of policing through ethics, accountability, and professionalism.
He expressed hope that the summit would focus on promoting ethical conduct, restoring public trust in law enforcement, and upholding the rule of law.
Key initiatives include protecting whistleblowers, implementing the National Anti-Corruption Strategy, and improving recruitment and training to attract the right calibre of candidates to the SAPS.
“If the SAPS is to fulfil its crucial mandate, we have to emerge from these few days with a clear plan on how to address the systemic deficiencies that are negatively impacting policing.
“As a country we owe the SAPS our full support. As government we remain committed to turning the tide against crime and to making our communities safer.
“It is our hope that the recommendations emerging from this summit translate into deeper collaboration, more effective methods and a promising future for policing in South Africa,” he said. – SAnews.gov.za
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