The boost to social grants from 1 April is unrealistic, says McKaiser Old Age Home chairman Jonathan Walton.
The boost to social grants from 1 April is unrealistic, says McKaiser Old Age Home chairman Jonathan Walton.
"It's good and fine to add R80, but when they decided on that amount, what exactly were they considering that will do for people?" Walton said in a telephone interview with Grocott's Mail on Thursday 3 April.
"The increases don't take into cognisance the realities out there."
Citing higher prices for bread and other basic foodstuffs, Walton said based on his involvement with the aged, he would have expected more.
The increase was announced by the Minister of Finance in his Budget speech in February.
The Older Persons Grant and the Disability Grant increase by R80 to R1 350 per month. The Foster Care Grant increases by R30 to R830 per month. The Child Support Grant increases by R10 to R310, with another small increase due in October 2014, bringing it to R320 per month.
In addition, the means test thresholds also increase marginally, allowing more people to be eligible for social assistance.
The move has been welcomed by the Black Sash.
In a statement this week, the organisation also expressed reservation that the latest increases to the social grants were not high.
"Some are not even linked to inflation," the statement said. "But any additional amount of money is welcomed by poor households. For more than 22% of the households in South Africa, social grants are the main source of income."
Social grants beneficiaries are also experiencing serious problems with the new biometric-banking system now used to pay out grants, and many are experiencing unexplained debit-deductions from their accounts.
"We urge anyone having this difficulty to report directly to SASSA at 0800 601 011, and to contact the Black Sash Helpline 072 6633 739 if they are not given the assistance they need," the organisation said.
In the absence of a comprehensive employment strategy that seriously addresses the problem of structural unemployment, the Black Sash said it believed the government should give "serious consideration" to a Basic Income Grant: "We believe that the most practical way to improve food security for children, the elderly and disabled, is to provide regular income to the millions of adults who simply cannot find work to support their families.
"If we are not prepared to invest in our people now, twenty years into democracy, we may never be able to reverse our neglect, as the quality of life of the unemployed deteriorates daily."
Figures obtained from Mark Rasmussen, general manager of grants administration of the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) reveal that the Eastern Cape has 1 739 434 adults and 1 878 408 children registered to receive social grants to the value of over R1.5 billion per month.
The Cacadu district has106 031 adults and 97 845 children registered to receive social grants to the value of R89 million per month.
Grahamstown/Makana has 26 096 adults and 21 495 children registered to receive social grants worth over R21 million per month.
For further information go to http://www.blacksash.org.za/index.php/your-rights/social-grants
