Trisha Shetty (Editor)

South African Social Security Agency

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Minister responsible
  
Bathabile Dlamini

South African Social Security Agency

Headquarters
  
SASSA HOUSE, 501 Prodinsa Building, Cnr Steve Biko and Pretorius Streets, Pretoria

Motto
  
"paying the right social grant, to the right person, at the right time and place. NJALO!"

Employees
  
9894 (including contracted employees)

The South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) is a national agency of the South African Government created in April 2005. SASSA was created to administer the application, approval and payment of social grants in South Africa. It was also designed to reallocate the function of social security from South Africa's provinces to the national sphere of government and reports to the Ministry of Social Development. Its current chief executive officer is Virginia Peterson. SASSA is a section 3A public entity, the focused institution responsible to ensure that government pays the right grant, to the right person, at a location which is most convenient to that person.

Contents

Social Grants Controversy

As Minister of Social Development, Dlamini failed to initiate the government's plan to institutionalise the payment of South Africa's social grants by the 31st March 2017 when the existing contract with Cash Paymaster Services to deliver payments to recipients would expire. This created concern nationally that 17 million welfare recipients would not receive payments by the 1st April 2017. Dlamini was criticised for her lack of action and ability to ensure that plans were in place for either a new contract was signed with a payment distributor or that it would be effectively in-sourced by government by the time the contract ended. She was also criticised for her handling of the media during the controversy. On the 6th March 2017 the contract with Cash Paymaster Services was renewed for another 2 years.

Types of grants

Social Assistance is provided in the form of:

  • grant for older persons;
  • disability grant;
  • war veteran’s grant;
  • care dependency grant;
  • foster child grant;
  • child support grant;
  • grant-in-aid;
  • Social Relief of Distress.

    • Previously, all nine (9) provincial governments were responsible for the administration of social grants, but this created serious social delivery challenges especially the delay in the approval and payments of grants, possible fraud and corruption in the system, inhumane pay points facilities and huge administration costs in delivering social grants.

    Adoption of the South African Social Security Agency Act, 2004 and the amendment of the Social Assistance Act, 2004, by National Parliament, paved the way for a more professional and focused service delivery to the social grant beneficiaries. This will yield the following dividends in the future:

  • Payment of social grants anywhere in the country regardless of where the social grant beneficiary reside;
  • Applying for a grant at any city or province in the country;
  • Reduction of waiting period to receive your grant from 3 months to 14 working days;
  • Establishment of paypoints at every 50 km radius;
  • Elimination of paypoints without humane facilities, electricity, proper sitting and security arrangements;
  • Employment of staff who went through security vetting to avoid attracting staff members with dubious intentions.

    • References

    South African Social Security Agency Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA