SRD Grant Application – While the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) continues to pay out grants to financially vulnerable South Africans, the Department of Social Development has not been spared from public scrutiny over some of the challenges that have hindered the processing of grant payments. Here is how social grants payment have been processed according to the Minister of Social Development.
During a virtual parliamentary session, the Minister of Social Development, Lindiwe Zulu was asked if Sassa is able to determine the provincial location of where a grant application is made and withdrawn.
The question further states that:” if not, (a) how does SASSA measure demand versus allocation of (a) offices, (b) staffing and (c) other resource capacity; if so, what is the breakdown of beneficiaries in each province?
In response, the Minister confirmed that Sassa is able to determine the province where a social grant application is made, if such an application was done in person at a Sassa office.
She further stated that concerning online applications, Sassa is unable to determine the location from which the application is done. The applicant’s address, on the other hand, confirms the province in which he or she lives.
In addition to knowing the location of a submitted application, Sassa can determine where grant money was withdrawn for beneficiaries who receive their money using the Sassa/SAPO card.
The Sassa Service Delivery Model (SDM), which was launched in 2010, provided the foundation for the formation of offices. Sassa agreed to create service offices within a 40-kilometer radius as part of the SDM.
Additionally, a mobile office unit and field staff would be deployed when there is insufficient infrastructure in the 40-kilometer radius and if the beneficiary numbers do not warrant a physical building.
Zulu added that, Sassa does take appropriate consideration of available resources (staffing, finance, and other tools of trade) in the process of striving to build these service offices to help achieve the progressive realisation of this purpose.
In response to question b), the Minister pointed out that funded posts on the organisational hierarchy must exist in order to construct any additional service points. When mobile services are offered, employees are dispatched from local offices on certain days to provide the service.
Regarding question c) Existing offices are assigned resources based on the following important factors, according to Zulu:
- Number of beneficiaries serviced by the affected office.
- Number of communities the office services which may require extensive travelling
- Financial resources available at the time.
Responding to questions d) the Minister broke down Sassa’s regional disbursement of social grant payments as at 20 March 2024 in the following way listed below
Total number of beneficiaries in payment by region and Grant Type as at 2024/03.
Eastern Cape
- Care Dependency Grant: 21 419
- Child Support Grant: 1 079 071
- Combination (foster child and care dependency): 1 578
- Disability Grant: 172 623
- Foster Child Grant: 47 387
- Grant-In-Aid: 36 422
Free State
- Care Dependency Grant: 8 293
- Child Support Grant: 418 796
- Combination (foster child and care dependency): 518
- Disability Grant: 75 276
- Foster Child Grant: 15 573
- Grant-In-Aid: 11 673
Gauteng
- Care Dependency Grant: 20 441
- Child Support Grant: 1 179 473
- Combination (foster child and care dependency): 638
- Disability Grant: 115 924
- Foster Child Grant: 26 651
- Grant-In-Aid: 11 366
KwaZulu- Natal
- Care Dependency Grant: 36 983
- Child Support Grant: 1 642 112
- Combination (foster child and care dependency): 1 331
- Disability Grant: 215 294 Foster Child Grant: 38 724
- Grant-In-Aid: 81 766
Limpopo
- Care Dependency Grant: 16 170
- Child Support Grant: 1 064 528
- Combination (foster child and care dependency): 546
- Disability Grant: 95 731
- Foster Child Grant: 26 332
- Grant-In-Aid: 56 198
Mpumalanga
- Care Dependency Grant: 11 122
- Child Support Grant: 655 480
- Combination (foster child and care dependency): 343
- Disability Grant: 76 135
- Foster Child Grant: 14 772
- Grant-In-Aid: 23 877
North West
- Care Dependency Grant: 9 123
- Child Support Grant: 498 010
- Combination (foster child and care dependency): 411
- Disability Grant: 61 456
- Foster Child Grant: 16 755
- Grant-In-Aid: 17 676
Northern Cape
- Care Dependency Grant: 5 121
- Child Support Grant: 181 501
- Combination (foster child and care dependency): 479
- Disability Grant: 472 26
- Foster Child Grant: 6 463
- Grant-In-Aid: 21 162
Western Cape
- Care Dependency Grant: 15 259
- Child Support Grant: 636 676
- Combination (foster child and care dependency): 942
- Disability Grant: 145 133
- Foster Child Grant: 19 633
- Grant-In-Aid: 23 631
Grand Total For All Provinces
- Care Dependency Grant: 143 931
- Child Support Grant: 7 355 641
- Combination (foster child and care dependency): 6 786
- Disability Grant: 1 004 798
- Foster Child Grant: 212 290
- Grant-In-Aid: 283 771
