KZN tops COVID-19 relief grant payout
The South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) says over three million unemployed people received the COVID-19 Social Relief of Distress grant, with KwaZulu-Natal having the highest number of beneficiaries.
The Social Development Department revealed this on Wednesday to the Portfolio Committee.
Out of the 3 019 102 people who received the grant 689 722 were from KZN.
KZN had the second-highest number of COVID-19 grant applications with 1 623 445. Gauteng inched ahead with 1 649 100.
"The agency will be reassessing all Special COVID-19 SRD grant applications to ensure that where circumstances of beneficiaries' income status have changed, the grant can be suspended,"says the departments Lumka Oliphant.
"This will be done so that the entity may only continue paying the grant to eligible persons. In order to clear the backlog on outstanding Special Covid-19 SRD grant payments, SASSA will also be processing reviewed Covid-19 declined grants and respond accordingly."
READ: SASSA reviews rejected COVID-19 relief applications
Oliphant says the Department is proposing that the grant be extended beyond the six months time frame.
"To address this, the Department is working on policy proposal on the feasibility of an income support to South Africans between the ages of 18-59 who have no income support.
"This is a result of the introduction of the Special COVID-19 SRD grant that has revived the discussion of the feasibility of a Basic Income Grant (BIG) as was recommended by the Taylor Report in 2002."
President Cyril Ramaphosa announced the R350 social relief fund back in April, as a means to help hard-hit families during the COVID-19 lockdown.
