During Social Development Month, Social Development Minister Sisisi Tolashe is urging all South Africans to refrain from selling or consuming alcohol around children throughout October.
This appeal was made during a commemorative event for World No Alcohol Day on October 2, attended by Tolashe and KwaZulu-Natal’s MEC for Social Development, Cynthia Mbali Shinga, in Sweetwaters, uMgungundlovu District.
The leaders highlighted the serious negative impacts of alcohol on individuals, families, and communities. The department noted that alcohol is the most commonly abused legal substance in South Africa, where consumption rates have risen significantly over the past decade.
The government reports that alcohol is a contributing factor in nearly half of all non-natural deaths, as well as 75% of homicides, 60% of car accidents, and 24% of vehicle-related injuries and fatalities.
Tolashe emphasized that alcohol ranks as the third leading cause of death and disability, following unsafe sex and interpersonal violence, which are both influenced by alcohol use. She remarked that alcohol consumption significantly contributes to the global disease burden, especially in low- and middle-income countries.
Young people aged 15 to 29 experience the highest health issues related to alcohol. While men generally drink more and face a greater health burden, a notable number of young women also consume alcohol.
Women in disadvantaged areas who drink at rates similar to men are less likely to seek help, and young women who drink are more prone to risky sexual behavior, poor adherence to HIV treatment, depression, and intimate partner violence.
