The Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns meant that millions of people had to stay home and had no prospects of earning money. This saw the introduction of the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant.
The South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) said when the grant was first introduced it paid R350 to more than 10 million people who received R350 grant payments monthly. Currently, the grant is only supporting around 5.2 million people.
Sassa has revealed that youth account for the majority of R350 grant applicants. This correlated with the youth unemployment rate of approximately 60% from the Statistics South Africa (StatsSA).
“The high rate of unemployment amongst the youth is a great cause for concern and the agency remains committed to playing its part in fighting the scourge of unemployment” declared Sassa.
However, Sassa has hit out at media reports that 60% of R350 grant recipients hold tertiary education qualifications. The agency explained that while 60% of grant applicants are members of the youth, only 5% of the R350 grant recipients hold tertiary education qualifications.
In order to qualify for the grant, individuals must be unemployed and be between the ages of 18 and 59 years old. They must also not be receiving other income or support from the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (Nsfas) or Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF).
It's important to note that Individuals can only apply for the R350 grant on the Sassa SRD website. They cannot apply for the grant at Sassa branches around the country.
