Social welfare programmes in South Africa
[7] Social welfare programmes in South Africa include cash assistance, unemployment insurance, medical provisions, and housing subsidies.
[8][9] However, critics points out corruption and maladministration in the social welfare system and the poor quality of RDP housing.
[5] In the early 1950s, the social welfare services for African, Indian and Colored persons were separated from the Department of Social Welfare and transferred to the Departments of Bantu Administration, Indian Affairs and Colored Affairs, respectively.
In the 1960s and 1970s, occupational retirement insurance expanded rapidly to include many low skilled labour, many of whom were black.
[5] Meanwhile, trade union movement organised by white workers extended the coverage of occupational retirement insurance to more industries.
[5] In the 1980s, in response to the growing protests against apartheid, the white minority government increased expenditure on social welfare services for black South Africans.
[5] According to economist Sampie Terreblanche, "by 1990 whites accounted for only 23% of welfare spending, whilst Coloureds and Indians received 24% and Africans 52%.
The programmes proposed by the White Paper included Unemployment Insurance, free health care programs for pregnant women and small children, free meals for students, and poor relief that would guarantee a minimum income for families and children.
[4] GEAR was the conservative macroeconomic policy South African government adopted in response to the 1996 currency crisis in an attempt to regain confidence in domestic and global capital market.
[5] GEAR emphasised that economic growth should be led by the private sector and reduced the role state took in economy.
[14] CSG paid the guardians of the eligible children R460 per month per child in 2022 through the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) under the DSD.
[8] Studies have revealed that the recipients of CSG showed better nutrition status, higher scores on a height to weight growth chart, and better school enrolment rates compared to children who are equally poor.
[19] The old-age pension accounts for the highest amount of government expenditure among all social assistance programmes in South Africa.
[20] Parents, guardians, and primary caregivers of children with disabilities are able to qualify for the Care Dependency Grant.
[35] In 1994, the post-apartheid government announced its plan to provide one million homes in the next 5 years as part of the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP).
[38] According to Stats SA's GHS of 2018, "the percentage of households that received some form of government housing subsidy increased from 5.6% in 2002 to 13.6% in 2018.
[9] Similarly, women-led households that receive CSG show increased child enrolment in school and the mothers are more likely to participate in the labour market.
[37] Some people are concerned that social grants foster a "dependency culture" that demotivates the unemployed to search for jobs.
[41] However, recent studies suggest that the reception of social grants does not affect jobless people's incentive to seek employment.
[41] Corruption and maladministration are huge problems that exist in South African social welfare system.
[10] According to Reddy, South Africa lost R1,5 billion per year through corruption and maladministration in the delivery of social grants.
[42] The Department of Military Veterans has been accused of skewed distribution of resources, with critics saying some provinces were entirely under served.
[43] There is a lack of offices distributed across the country so veterans seeking help must travel to Pretoria for service.
[43] The other criticism with RDP housing units are the lack of basic services such as running water, sewerage and electricity and amenities such as schools and clinics.
