CWD Bonne Esperance Refugee Shelter

About CWD Bonne Esperance Refugee Shelter

Catholic Welfare and Development (CWD) is the primary social welfare and development arm of the Catholic Archdiocese of Cape Town. The Bonne Esperance Refugee Shelter is one of CWD's specialised programmes, providing residential accommodation and support to refugee and asylum-seeking women in Cape Town who are at risk.

Refugee and asylum-seeking women face compounded GBV risk in South Africa. Lacking documentation, language proficiency, and community networks, and often unable to access state services due to documentation barriers or xenophobia, these women are acutely vulnerable to exploitation, trafficking, and intimate partner violence. The Bonne Esperance Shelter fills a critical gap by providing a faith-based place of safety specifically accessible to this population.

CWD's shelter work with refugees also falls within the framework of the Cape Town Refugee Forum/Cape Town Refugee Centre, which was co-founded by Catholic Welfare and Development in 1994 as part of an interfaith response to the growing refugee population in the Western Cape.

Services

• Residential accommodation for refugee and asylum-seeking women at risk
• Psychosocial support and counselling
• Referrals to documentation, legal, and health services
• Connection to the broader Catholic Welfare and Development network and other refugee service providers in Cape Town

Contact

CWD main office: 021 461 3494 | [email protected]