By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Minister of Social Development Lindiwe Zulu says the money returned to National Treasury was not R15 billion and would not affect the social relief of distress (SRD) grant budget.
Zulu said the department returned R4 billion to the National Treasury and it did not affect the budget for the SRD grant or beneficiaries.
She said the money was repurposed.
“The money that was returned was for the 2022/23 financial year and it was repurposed for other areas,” said Zulu, explaining the department budgeted for 15 million people but ended up paying 10.5 qualifying beneficiaries in that financial year.
Zulu said the department currently pays 8.5 million beneficiaries.
“[The money returned] did not compromise those who applied for the grant and didn’t get the money because we have been paying 10.5 million and right now we are at 8.5 million.”
According to Zulu, the number of beneficiaries dropped after the department found some beneficiaries were employed or receiving money from other parties.
“The inconsistency [in payment] is due to us having to check whether a person is really not getting money elsewhere or receiving other grants. Many continued to apply even though they did not qualify for the SRD grant.”
According to Stats SA’s latest General Household Survey for 2022, grants were the second main source of income for 50.2% of households after salaries (59.75%) in South Africa.
However, grants were also the primary source of income for 23.5% of all households in the country. In addition, in the Eastern Cape, Mpumalanga, Limpopo and Free State, more households received grants than salaries.
The introduction of the SRD grant following the outbreak of Covid-19 also increased the number of households who benefitted from grants from 30.9% in 2019 to 37.0% in 2022.
A social development adjusted budget summary document showed that the department returned R9.1 billion last October and an additional R6 billion by the end of the financial year in March.
This news comes amid a turbulent time for the Postbank, where a technical glitch affected over half a million people’s ability to get their SASSA grants.