Poverty Will Increase Without COVID-19 Grants – Social Dev Dept

Poverty will spiral grant recipients will be worse off than they are right now. 

The Social Development Department says this will be the effect of ending the special R350 COVID-19 grant.

While in favour of extending the grant, the department told Parliament, there is no money for an extension.

More than four million people received a social relief of distress grant over the past year.

But it’s not been plain sailing.

Up to 2.2 million approved grants are yet to be paid.

A further 1.4 million grants approved on appeal, are also yet to be disbursed.

The department says, were it not for the grant, the food poverty line could have been double its present level.