Ramaphosa pressed to make Covid-19 grants permanent
Civil society organisations and economists have welcomed President Cyril Ramaphosa’s decision to extend the payment of the special Covid-19 grant.
On Thursday, Ramaphosa detailed government’s economic recovery plan before a joint sitting of Parliament.
Ramaphosa told MPs that the extension of the R350 grants would maintain a temporary expansion of social protection and allow the labour market sufficient time to recover.
Black Sash national director Lynette Maart welcomed the decision but raised her concerns about the inadequacy to provide for basic needs.
“There’s two problems but first of all we note the extension by three months and that would mean that the social grant would be ending in January 2021. Now this relief is already highly inadequate with the high unemployment rate and for millions of people without means to provide for themselves,” said Maart.
She further called for government to make the special grants a permanent feature of the social security system.
“We would have liked for the president to announce an extension of the Covid-19 social relief of distress as well as the continuation of the caregivers grant for inclusion as a permanent social security measure for those between the ages of 18 and 59.
“If we do not have those grants people fall into deep poverty, perpetual inequality,” Maart warned.
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Ramaphosa detailed the plan during a joint sitting of Parliament on Thursday, saying it will focus on four key priorities. "To reindustrialise our economy, focusing on growing small businesses, to accelerate economic reforms to unlock investment and growth, to fight crime and corruption and to improve the capability of the state."
The provision of the grant will now be extended to January, instead of the end of October.
Meanwhile, Efficient Group chief economist Dawie Roodt said the extension of the grants might prove too heavy for government coffers.
“The fact that the president announced that some of these grants will be extended was no surprise to that. He did mention that after three months extra it will come to an end but I’m not so sure that it will come to an end.
“But the reality is that we just do not have money and the grants as it is at the moment is just not something we can afford anymore,” he added.
The Covid-19 emergency and caregiver grants were rolled out earlier this year to address the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Listen to Roodt below: