Western Cape After School Game Changer: A violence prevention intervention?

The Western Cape After School Game Changer (ASGC) is a strategic coordination model, rather than a direct service provider, aimed at preventing youth violence in South Africa's Western Cape province. By coordinating government departments and NGOs, the ASGC enhances the quality and reach of afterschool programmes in low- and no-fee schools. It utilizes a social ecological framework to disrupt risky behaviors through improved practitioner training, safe spaces, and positive role modeling. While the initiative has significantly increased learner participation (reaching 134,380 registered learners by 2017/18) and secured substantial funding (approximately R215 million for 2018/19), the report highlights a need for greater budget transparency and a shift toward institutionalization to ensure long-term sustainability.

• The After School Game Changer (ASGC) is not a direct afterschool programme but a "complex, strategic model for coordination" designed to support government and civil society partners in providing safe and stimulating afterschool care.
• The ASGC functions as a violence prevention intervention by disrupting risky behaviours at the individual level through relationship and community-level interventions. It aims to increase learners' "attachment to education/schooling" to protect them from perpetrating or being victims of violence.
• The ASGC's coordination strategy relies on four key elements: maximizing staff capacity through shared responsibilities, positioning team members to influence decisions, maintaining flexibility and adaptability, and facilitating access to funding across departments.
• The initiative has seen significant growth in learner participation. Registered learners increased from 49,000 in 2015/16 to 134,380 in 2017/18, with the percentage of those attending regularly and consistently rising from 36% in 2015/16 to 56% in 2017/18.
• The ASGC employs several core components of practice: 'Edu-collaborate' (an online platform for identifying services), a customized suite of training programmes (such as the Extended Education Practitioner training), a library of online resources, and networking platforms like the Community of Practice.
• The Grade 4 Academic Support Programme, developed through the ASGC, targets learners in 16 schools across the Cape Winelands, Metro East, and Metro North districts. It employs unemployed youth (aged 18 to 25) as tutors to help learners catch up in literacy and numeracy.
• The total approximate cost of the ASGC for the 2018/19 financial year was R215 million, including infrastructure. However, the report notes a lack of budget transparency, stating that approximately R130 million of the reported R160 million in direct costs is not clearly reflected in budget votes.
• The ASGC tested five collaboration models, but suspended the government-led model in Paarl East due to lack of priority and capacity, and the DCAS-led model because the facility was not located at a school and was shared with other groups.
• The report recommends that the ASGC improve its sustainability by creating funding models that distinguish between the costs of afterschool activities and the costs of the coordinating structure, and by providing more detailed financial reporting on NGO funding.

APA

Institute for Security Studies (n.d.). Western Cape After School Game Changer: A violence prevention intervention? https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/sar20-1.pdf

Chicago

Institute for Security Studies. Western Cape After School Game Changer: A violence prevention intervention? n.d. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/sar20-1.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Institute for Security Studies |title=Western Cape After School Game Changer: A violence prevention intervention? |url=https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/sar20-1.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{instituteforsecuritystudiesndwestern, author = {{Institute for Security Studies}}, title = {{Western Cape After School Game Changer: A violence prevention intervention?}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, url = {https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/sar20-1.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }