Straining to support: South Africa's social grants are vital but can the state keep up?
Image: Tracy Adams
Social relief of distress, or social grants, is a key part of South Africa's welfare system; however, recent data indicates that its role is increasingly strained, raising concerns about sustainability, economic growth, and social cohesion.
According to the latest General Household Survey released by Statistics South Africa (Stats SA), an unprecedented 40.1% of the population - approximately 25.4 million individuals-now rely on social grants.
This marks a significant increase from previous years and reflects a steady rise in dependence, particularly amid persistent unemployment and economic challenges.
Risenga Maluleke, Statistician-General of South Africa, noted that the country's official unemployment rate hit 32.9% in the first quarter of 2025.
Such figures highlight the stark depth of economic hardship many face, with social grants serving as a vital safety net without sufficient employment opportunities.
Paul Maritz, Director at Free SA, a foundation advocating for rights, equality, and systemic reform, highlighted the gravity of this dependence.
'The growing reliance on social grants - now affecting over 25 million people — highlights deep socio-economic challenges and the urgent need for structural change,' he explained.
'Our proposed Power to the People Amendment aims to address these issues by reducing waste, devolving policing, and breaking monopolies that hinder economic opportunity.'
Maritz warned that 'sustained dependence on grants without parallel investment in job creation risks entrenching a welfare economy that stifles individual potential and hampers long-term growth.'
He warned that if current trends persist, South Africa's economy could face stagnation, shrinking tax bases, and rising inequality-all threatening social stability.
The fiscal burden of social grants is significant. In 2011, the South African government allocated around 3.5% of GDP to social assistance, which has grown over the years.
The Centre for Global Development estimated that expenditure on social grants, particularly the Child Support Grant (CSG), reached nearly ZAR31 billion (approximately US$4.2 billion) in 2010-11.
Instead, they argued that they serve as a necessary-but insufficient-measure to support those unable to provide for themselves.
"While grants have helped improve food security, children's well-being, and school attendance,' Maritz warned that they are not a long-term solution to poverty.
'Overdependence can distort labor markets. When social assistance becomes a substitute for employment, it can disincentivize active job-seeking and skills development.
'Countries with more developed economies often implement prerequisites or conditions tied to grants, encouraging recipients to pursue upskilling or community participation.'
He added that the current approach risks creating a stagnating workforce and reducing overall productivity in South Africa, thereby hindering economic growth and perpetuating inequality.
'Ironically, the system designed to reduce inequality may inadvertently reinforce it if not paired with empowerment strategies.
'Without access to meaningful employment, quality education, and secure communities, social mobility remains elusive for many beneficiaries.'
Furthermore, dependence on grants without addressing the root causes-unemployment, corruption, and inefficient public services-could erode trust in institutions.
Maritz warned that 'a society where millions feel trapped and unheard is inherently unstable,' stressing the need for comprehensive reforms.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Maverick
2 hours ago
- Daily Maverick
Watch – Manufactured praise: The strange campaign around Senzo Mchunu
Senior journalist Rebecca Davis highlights a disturbing trend on South African social media: fake accounts, copy-paste tweets, and manufactured praise for politicians. From the ANC to ActionSA, online manipulation is simulating public support and it's already impacting political discourse. With the 2026 elections around the corner, this could be a threat to democracy.
The South African
5 hours ago
- The South African
Free co-working spaces, free entrepreneur support at new hub in Cape Town
The timbuktoo Creative Hub has officially launched in Cape Town's District Six, offerering a first-of-its-kind facility in Africa. The hub provides free co-working spaces, expert mentorship, and comprehensive tech support. Local and pan-African artists, designers, musicians, and storytellers are now invited to collaborate and grow their businesses at the space at no cost. 'Creative industries are a major driver of economic growth, yet African creatives often lack access to the resources, networks and funding needed to scale their businesses,' said Head of Entrepreneur Development at UVU Accelerate, Lara Rosmarin. 'We're inviting Cape Town's creative community to come and experience the facilities and support we've developed specifically for them.' Housed in the historic Homecoming Centre (formerly the Athol Fugard Theatre in the CBD), timbuktoo is a purpose-built facility offering free co-working spaces, unlimited WiFi, and access to industry-specific support in areas like animation, fashion, textile technology, music, and augmented/virtual reality. The initiative is powered by a major partnership between the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Western Cape Department of Economic Development and Tourism (DEDAT), UVU Africa, Snake Nation, and the Craft and Design Institute. Together, they aim to unlock new potential within South Africa's fast-growing creative economy. Free, hands-on guidance from resident entrepreneurs Technolgy mentorship Digital upskilling Industry-specific support Access to the broader accelerator network Free spaces for creators to host community events The Cape Town project forms part of timbuktoo, a continent-wide innovation drive led by the UNDP to support African startups. And the response has been strong – over 280 applicants have already expressed interest in the hub's Creative Accelerator programme. 'Every groundbreaking venture starts with an audacious idea and the courage to nurture it,' added Maxwell Gomera, UNDP South Africa Resident Representative and Director of the UNDP Africa Sustainable Finance Hub. 'Through the timbuktoo Creative Hub, we're not just incubating businesses, we're cultivating a generation of creative entrepreneurs who understand that Africa's stories, innovations and cultural expression aren't just our heritage, they're our competitive advantage.' Are you interested in securing a co-working space in Cape Town? Contact the centre by emailing connect@ or calling 021 466 7200. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
Daily Maverick
5 hours ago
- Daily Maverick
Loaded for Bear: Mantashe's mining cadastre is rolling out at a geological pace
Everything at the DMPR seems to take 'longer than anticipated', which speaks volumes to its many governance failures, and points to entrenched interests wary of the light of transparency being directed to the applications and permitting process. It has been music to the ears of South Africa's (SA's) mining sector, but in hindsight, only the tone-deaf would have fallen for the melody. For months, Minerals and Petroleum Minister Gwede Mantashe promised that the long-awaited mining cadastre – desperately needed to address an applications backlog and bring transparency to the permitting process – would be up and running by June. 'The completion of the migration process to the new efficient and transparent mining licensing system, in June next year, is poised to modernise our licensing system, ensure regulatory certainty, and the sustainability of the South African mining industry,' Mantashe told the Joburg Mining Indaba in October last year. The lack of a proper cadastre – an online portal that displays a country's mineral wealth while allowing companies to seamlessly apply for mining and prospecting rights – has long been a deterrent to mining investment, leading to massive applications backlogs and suspicions of corruption at regional offices of the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources (DMPR). This shambles is especially harmful to prospecting – a high-risk activity – and is a key reason why SA's share of global exploration spend has fallen to under 1% from 5% two decades ago. Mantashe and other officials in the department for months this year stuck to the June timeline, a prospect that admittedly needed to be seen to be believed, after years of bungling and needless delays on this front. And in late May, lo and behold, there was an adjustment to this timeline – the first flashing red light signalling that the rollout was hitting some potholes. Tseliso Maqubela, a deputy director-general in the DMPR, told the Junior Mining Indaba that the department was 'on track to deliver a transparent cadastral system' but it would not go live everywhere initially, with the Western Cape chosen as the province to test drive the new system. And last week – surprise, surprise! – Mantashe told Parliament that the Western Cape launch had been delayed by another three months, reported in Mining Weekly. '… this is a delicate process that requires precision and quality assurance, and it is taking longer than we had anticipated. Consequently, this has resulted in a need to reschedule the phased rollout of the system in the Western Cape by a further three months,' Mantashe said. Everything at the DMPR – formerly the DMRE – seems to take 'longer than anticipated', which speaks volumes to its many governance failures and points to entrenched interests wary of the light of transparency being directed to the applications and permitting process. The Mpumalanga regional office is a standout in this regard. It accounts for the bulk of the applications backlog, a suspicious state of affairs linked to a dubious scramble for mining permits for coal. Mining permits only cover up to five hectares of land and have far fewer regulatory and environmental requirements than mining rights. Then there was the pledge to publish quarterly updates on the applications bottleneck, and the progress made in whittling it down. An update was published in November last year. But there has been nothing since – unless it is buried somewhere on the department's website, which would also go against the grain of transparency. Mantashe did tell Parliament last week that 2,596 applications were approved in the previous financial year. The cadastre provider – PMG consortium – was selected in January last year and is spear-headed by Canadian-based Geotech, which is widely seen as first-class in the field. But the bottom line is that the Western Cape launch has now been moved out to the end of September, leaving the industry wondering when the system will be up and running nationwide. And given the department's track record, it will come as no surprise if that timeline is missed as well. The cadastre rollout is going at a geological pace, and meanwhile the mining sector still has to contend with the utterly useless Samrad system for processing mining and exploration applications. New coal deposits might form before the new cadastre goes live. DM
