NATIONAL NEWS - In response to the Western Cape Government's undertaking to create safer communities, the Western Cape Department of Agriculture (WCDoA) has established a Rural Safety Desk and a Rural Safety Monitoring Dashboard.
Agriculture Minister Dr Ivan Meyer says the desk provides a platform for the public, farmers/producers, agri-workers and agricultural stakeholders to log enquiries, queries, and matters on rural safety.
"Information logged via the desk is populated on the WCDoA's innovative Rural Safety Monitoring Dashboard."
Developed in conjunction with Enterprise GIS-solution, the brand new interactive digital platform uses a combination of technology tools, i.e. mobile and web-mapping applications. Meyer said the Dashboard's purpose is to monitor rural safety incidents reported within the agricultural environment.
Currently, forty (40) cases have been logged on the Dashboard.
"The Dashboard will assist in identifying rural crime hotspots as well as inform data-led rural safety interventions to improve safety within rural and agricultural communities across the province. A spatial representation of incidences of crime enables us to develop appropriate strategies in response to the safety needs of our farming communities."
Information gathered via the Rural Safety Help Desk and Rural Safety Monitoring Dashboard is shared with the South African Police Service and the Department of Community Safety's Court Watching Brief Unit.
"The Court Watching Brief Unit assists with making follow-ups on rural safety related cases. Furthermore, the unit's representatives attend court sessions with the sole purpose to ensure that rural crime-related cases are successfully prosecuted," said Meyer.
The dedicated rural safety desk e-mail address is Ruralsafety@elsenburg.com.
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