We are going to ask this question until we get a proper answer: Is the national 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children campaign making a difference? Year after year, millions are pumped into the campaign and government ministers and other senior officials suddenly emerge to trumpet their support for it.Some of our non-government organisations get co-opted and included in the line-up of those who will use the coming 16 days to tell the same story over and over again.We are fully behind the campaign, which highlights the plight of women and children, but we have a duty to ask those in power whether, in its present format, it is still relevant.We believe that the time and money used to fund the campaign should be diverted to projects that will have a direct impact on eradicating violence against women and children.Those who are affected by the scourge of violence seem to be mere numbers in the speeches of those who take to the stage and speak ostensibly on their behalf.What is troubling is that the government has over the years failed to properly assess the effectiveness of the campaign.If you can't measure something, you certainly won't be able to manage it.We call on the government to reassess the campaign and look for new ways to re-awake the conscience of those prone to violence.We will continue to fail those we claim to be helping if we continue on the same path.We will see the same faces pictured in the media year after year. But there will be scant public recognition for the victims and those in danger of being subjected to violence.The government should involve many more ordinary people in these campaigns if they are to be effective.Stop the high-profile pontificating and get down to where the need is. We owe it to our women and children, and it should never be just about self-aggrandisement...