While the announcement of the R350 grant being extended for a further 12 months was welcomed, many are calling for the grant to be increased.
Last week President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant will be extended to March 2023. The grant provides crucial financial support to more than 10 million unemployed individuals living in South Africa.
The Black Sash has welcomed the announcement made by the president. However, the organisation is calling on the amount received by the grant’s recipients to be increased to R624.
National Education and Training Management at Black Sash, Amanda Rinquest explains that the R624 is the minimum amount of money needed by a person to purchase enough food so they do not starve.
Rinquest explains that the R624 does not take into account other things needed by people like electricity, transport or gas.
She said, “So this amount is really what we're asking for to help people, to help people access the economy, not for people to live off of R624. That's not a dignified life for all but for them for people to be able to go and look for a job, go and start their own small businesses”.
The president also announced that the government will undertake broad consultations and detailed technical work to find the best permanent solution to replace the R350 grant. He added that future support must also be affordable for the country.
Rinquest said, “The Black Sash believes that basic income support and its broader call for universal basic income is sustainable because what we've seen is that it's allowed people to access the economy. People are spending that money in their local communities, at shops, it's going back into the local economy”.
