The Department of Social Development plans to make a number of changes to South Africa’s grant system in the coming year – including a formal move towards a Basic Income Grant.
The changes are outlined in the department’s annual performance plan for 2022/2023 which was published this week.The severe impact of the pandemic on the economy and its ability to create jobs has raised new questions about the reliance on economic growth to address unemployment and poverty, and revived interest in the prospect of a basic income grant as another lever to tackle poverty and inequality, and engender a more inclusive growth path, the department said.
“The Department will continue to contribute to processes that stimulate discussions around the resource modelling and implementation of the basic income grant ,” minister Lindiwe Zulu said in an accompanying statement. “The BIG promises to be a major policy engagement that we will be part of during the 2022/2023 financial year,” she said.
“Because of their wide scope and the significant impact they are likely to have on every single person in the country and the economy, it will be essential to consult widely on all aspects and develop a social compact between business, labour and civil society regarding the proposals.
This is intended to reduce the demand on the foster child system, by reducing the number of children entering the foster care system purely to access the foster child grant due to the large differential in value between this grant and the child support grant, it said.
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