A legacy Social Pension programme from the time of apartheid is still being used to distribute SASSA grants in 2025. Here’s why …
relies on a remarkable piece of information technology that’s more than 40-years old. The Social Pension Programme – or SOCPEN as it is known – has stood the test of time and still reliably delivers SASSA grants in 2025. Even if it’s on a much, much larger scale than initially anticipated.Beneficiaries eagerly await news on increases for SASSA grants in 2025, which are set to roll out in April. Image: File, SOCPEN has its roots in a politically transformative period in South African history.
This choice of COBOL would prove prescient, as its reliability to process high volumes of transactions remains relevant for large-scale SASSA grants in 2025. Today, it manages the entire grant administration process . Image: File What makes SOCPEN particularly noteworthy is how it’s managed to continue to scale up over four decades. When first implemented, the system handled no more than four-million beneficiaries. Today, SASSA grants in 2025 are successfully delivered to 18-million ‘core’ grant recipients – that’s an increase of four hold. This equates to billions of rands processed each month – a true testament to the robustness of its original architecture.
SASSA fraud and theft was in the headlines in 2024, leading to the suspension of its CEO. However, when you understand how old the IT system is, it’s kind of miraculous there aren’t more system breakdowns. However, maintaining and improving SOCPEN does present many challenges. For example, adding ad hoc biometric data systems like fingerprints and facial recognition is complex.
Nevertheless, SOCPEN’s proven stability over four decades of operation cannot be taken for granted. For example, the IT system has built-in controls and audit trails to help prevent fraud. Its COBOL foundation, while old, remains highly efficient at processing huge batch transactions required for SASSA grant in 2025. Perhaps understanding its role can helpThat said, maintaining this legacy system comes with significant challenges.
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