In his recent State of the Nation Address, the President reaffirmed South Africa’s commitment to safeguarding the first 1 000 days of a child’s life — the period universally recognised as foundational for brain development, learning and long-term wellbeing.
But if that commitment is to mean anything in practice, one of the simplest and most cost-effective early interventions can no longer be overlooked: universal newborn hearing screening.
A newly released policy brief, Every child heard: Why South Africa must implement universal newborn hearing screening now, published by Hold My Hand and Change Ideas in collaboration with the Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) Community of Practice, lays out the case with clarity and urgency.
The message is direct: South Africa has the evidence, the models and the opportunity. What is needed now is national implementation.
The Numbers We Cannot Ignore
Each day in South Africa, approximately 17 infants are born with permanent hearing loss — about 6 000 children every year.
Yet fewer than 10% of newborns are screened.
For many children, hearing loss is only identified at 20 to 30 months of age — long after the critical window when early detection can protect language development, learning potential and social integration. This delay stands in stark contrast to the guideline set by the World Health Organization, which advocates screening within the first month of life.
The consequence is not only developmental — it is systemic. Late detection compounds educational challenges, increases the need for specialised support and carries long-term economic implications.
The policy brief estimates that the lifetime economic burden of one annual birth cohort of unidentified infant hearing loss in South Africa amounts to R68.6 billion — roughly R1 billion per year of life.
Inaction is not neutral. It is expensive.
A Condition Detectable Within Hours
Prof De Wet Swanepoel, Professor of Audiology at the University of Pretoria — a WHO Collaborating Centre for the Prevention of Deafness and Hearing Loss — speaks with urgency:
“No child should wait years for a condition that can be identified within hours after birth. No caregiver should leave a facility without knowing whether their baby’s hearing was checked and what to do next if there is a concern.”
Hearing screening technology is fast, non-invasive and can be integrated into routine maternal and child health services. It does not require reinvention. It requires prioritisation.
The recently adopted National Strategy to Accelerate Action for Children (NSAAC) recognises newborn hearing screening as a catalytic intervention capable of accelerating progress for children. Universal screening represents what the policy brief calls a practical “first 1 000 days win”.
From Patchwork to Pathway
Currently, access to newborn hearing screening in South Africa is uneven. Support often depends on geography, awareness or a family’s ability to pay privately.
Dr Noxolo Gqada, Strategy Lead for the Hold My Hand Accelerator for Children and Teens, underscores the inequity:
“Too often, the only children receiving support are those whose families can navigate the system or pay privately. Every child deserves the chance to understand their name, sing a song, or laugh with their friends.”
The EHDI Community of Practice, working alongside Hold My Hand, is calling for a clear, national pathway that ensures:
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Universal hearing screening within the first four weeks of life
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Fair and timely access to intervention, including early therapy, social support and hearing technology such as hearing aids and cochlear implants — particularly in the public health system
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Inclusive intervention services that respect spoken language, sign language, or both
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Meaningful support for caregivers to enable informed decision-making
This is not only about detection. It is about dignity, access and choice.
Communities Matter
World Hearing Day 2026 carries the theme: From communities to classrooms: hearing care for all children.
While classrooms provide a natural screening entry point, experts caution that identification must begin far earlier — and that parents and caregivers remain central.
Prof Claudine Storbeck, Director of HI Hopes and Associate Professor at the Centre for Deaf Studies at Wits University, offers practical advice:
“The golden rule is, if in doubt follow up — whether it is with your doctor, your paediatrician or healthcare worker. South Africa’s research shows that maternal suspicion is often ignored and would have led to diagnosis of infant hearing loss almost one year earlier.”
Communities are not peripheral to this effort. They are foundational.
Raising the Standard, Not Just Awareness
“World Hearing Day should not only raise awareness,” says Prof Swanepoel. “It should raise the standard. We have local evidence, workable community models and clear lessons on what improves uptake. We need to act on what we already know.”
The policy brief is available at www.holdmyhand.org.za and outlines both the urgency and the feasibility of universal newborn hearing screening.
The question is no longer whether South Africa can do it.
The question is whether it will.
If the first 1 000 days truly matter — and national leadership says they do — then every child must leave a healthcare facility with their hearing status known, their caregivers informed and their future protected.
Every child heard is not a slogan.
It is a standard.
