Change Ideas Policy Briefs
Change Ideas aims to empower you with comprehensive policy briefs, research findings, and expert perspectives on 10 key opportunities identified as pivotal for fostering sustainable change.
DGMT’s new initiative, Change Ideas, through policy briefs, advocacy and engagements with decision-makers and the public, aims to address issues facing South Africa, delve into their root causes, leverage proven research (both locally and internationally) and propose practical solutions that are readily scalable.
As a DGMT initiative, Change Ideas aligns with our organisation’s 10 opportunities, which play a significant role in breaking intergenerational cycles of poverty and helping our citizens escape the grip of inequality.
Change Ideas will develop policy briefs and related content.
Explore policy briefs to combat gender-based violence
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Action against GBV
This brief outlines the scale and persistence of gender-based violence in South Africa, despite strong constitutional protections, and calls for urgent, actionable measures beyond government pledges to protect women and girls.
Investing in GBV safe spaces
This brief highlights the potential of Thuthuzela Care Centres and GBV shelters to provide comprehensive support for survivors, and calls for their improvement, standardisation and expansion across South Africa.
GBV: Navigating the police and justice systems
This brief examines the critical role of police and the justice system in addressing gender-based violence in South Africa, highlighting systemic barriers that hinder survivors’ access to justice and drawing lessons from international experiences.
Alcohol and GBV
This brief examines the strong link between alcohol and gender-based violence in South Africa, highlighting how high rates of heavy episodic drinking drive both the frequency and severity of intimate partner violence.
We've developed policy briefs with Hold My Hand
Hold My Hand is a national communications campaign that supports the National Strategy to Accelerate Action for Children (NSAAC).
It exists to rally all of society behind a shared vision for children, ensuring every child in South Africa grows up with enough love, nutritious food, safety and opportunities to develop their full potential. By uniting government, civil society, business and communities, Hold My Hand helps turn constitutional rights into a lived reality for our children.
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Hold my Hand: Closing the food gap
This policy brief examines South Africa’s urgent child nutrition crisis, where severe malnutrition, stunting and obesity coexist despite the country producing enough food for all. It calls for decisive action to make nutrient-rich foods more affordable, restore the Child Support Grant to the food poverty line, and strengthen local food systems so no child goes hungry.
Hold my Hand: Multiple Micronutrient Supplementation
Every day, 3 000 children are born in South Africa, and their future health starts long before birth. This policy brief explores how shifting from Iron and Folic Acid (IFA) to Multiple Micronutrient Supplementation (MMS) can transform maternal and child health. MMS is proven to reduce low birth weight, preterm births and stillbirths, and offers one of the best returns on investment in public health.
Hold my Hand: The case for a maternal support grant
This policy brief makes the case for introducing a Maternal Support Grant (MSG) - a monthly cash transfer starting in the second trimester of pregnancy and transitioning automatically to the Child Support Grant (CSG) after birth. The grant would fill a critical gap in South Africa’s social protection system, protect mothers during pregnancy, and improve child health outcomes from the earliest stages of life.
Hold my Hand: Implement universal newborn hearing screening
This policy brief urges the adoption of universal newborn hearing screening (UNHS) in South Africa. Each year, about 6 000 infants are born with hearing loss, yet fewer than 10% are screened at birth, leading to late diagnosis beyond the crucial early-intervention window. A national Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) programme, integrated into routine postnatal care, is feasible, cost-effective, and vital for healthy development.
Discover more from our policy brief library
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Implementing the WHO Best Buys
This brief examines the World Health Organisation’s alcohol best buys and explores how they align with some of the proposed changes outlined in the draft Liquor Amendment Bill.
Combatting alcohol harms: Introducing a Minimum Unit Pricing
This brief advocates for the introduction of a Minimum Unit Pricing policy as a crucial strategy to combat binge drinking.
Children and Nutrition
In this policy brief, we examine the status and circumstances of our country’s children who feel the impact of hunger and malnutrition throughout their lives, starting in the womb.
Double-discounted list of 10 budget-friendly food items
In this brief, DGMT and Grow Great focus on one practical intervention – 10 budget-friendly food items – which is about nutritious, cost-conscious foods.
Closing the early learning gap for 3-5-year-olds
This brief explores universal access to quality early childhood development (ECD) at scale and how it can change the status quo and improve life trajectories.
The Essential Package for Early Childhood Development
In this brief, we look at why an “Essential Package” of ECD services is needed to close the glaring gaps in ECD delivery.