# Deputy minister in the Presidency for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, Mmapaseka Letsike, has warned that development cannot be considered genuine progress if it results in unsafe, inaccessible, and unequal spaces. She has called for a human rights-centred approach to infrastructure development, arguing that the built environment plays a critical role in advancing dignity, equality, and constitutional rights. Letsike says South Africa’s democratic project should be measured not only through laws and policies, but through the quality and accessibility of homes, schools, clinics and public spaces experienced by citizens.
Deputy minister Letsike calls for safe and accessible development