Over the years, social grants administered by the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) have served as a main source of income for many people living in South Africa.
Delivering the keynote address at a commemoration of Human Rights Day, President Cyril Ramaphosa highlighted that the country’s social grant assistance programme continued to benefit at least 18 million people each month, while a further 11 million unemployed South Africans are receiving the SRD grant.
That is nearly half the population of the country.
Just over 2.5 million people were receiving social grants in 1999. Today, over 18 million people are receiving these grants.
The latest statistics have put the country’s youth unemployment rate at 64.18%. The youth unemployment rate refers to the margin of the workforce aged 15–24 that is currently not working but actively searching for work.
To provide relief to some of these individuals, government introduced the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant, where beneficiaries receive R350 per month.
While this grant has been extended to the end of March 2024, many have expressed that there is no need to have it extended and have criticized that South Africa is turning into a “welfare state”.
Meanwhile, as a way highlighting grant recipients (particularly the R350 grant) and how far the money they receive is able to carry them, the Social Policy Initiative will be showcasing a documentary titled "Decent Path" on 25 March 2023.
According to the Initiative's Executive Director Isobel Frye, the film also emphasizes the dire need for the permanent implementation of a basic income grant as the country's citizens are entirely dependent on the money this grant provides, and experience devastation when that money ends abruptly.
Frye said they not only want the film to tell peoples stories but also hope that it inspires both policy makers and ordinary South African’s to start talking about it.
There are a lot of people that think the grant is a bad thing, and the film really lays bare exactly how without that kind of state intervention, the lives forward of many people is hopeless.
Frye believes that recognizing South Africa as a "welfare State" is not a negative thing, as it shows that the government is taking action to help the most disadvantaged rather than ignoring the problem.
"I think we should call it a 'caring State', a state that cares for its people." She continues, "If the private sector doesn't create jobs, if people are hungry, then what is the state meant to do? The state is meant to provide that basic platform which enables people to start their own livelihoods, and that's what the movie also shows.”
The documentary is set to debut during the Human Rights Festival, held at Constitutional Hill.
In an effort to permanently provide relief to most vulnerable, government has revealed that work is underway to provide basic income support within the country’s fiscal constraints.
