Problems affecting South Africans – SASSA Payment Glitches, Loadshedding and More!
Life in South Africa has become increasingly difficult for the poor, with an ever increasing price of food and daily essentials. The Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice & Dignity group (PMBEJD) estimated that approximately 30.4 million people in South Africa live below the old upper-bound poverty line of R1 417 per person per month. They also estimated that 13.8 million people live below the food poverty line of R760 per person per month.
Most people living below the food poverty line (i.e. the amount of money an individual needs to afford the minimum required daily energy intake, also known as the “extreme” poverty line), rely on the government’s social grants.
The following are some of the major problems affecting the people of South Africa:
1. SASSA Grant not paid on time due to Postbank “glitch”
Each month, millions of South Africans wait for their SASSA grant payments (many of whom have no other source of income), to help them get by. SASSA grants were expected to be paid from 5 September 2023, but most recipients did not receive their money due to a system glitch with Postbank. As of the morning of 8 September 2023, many grant recipients have still not received their money.
2. NSFAS wrongly defunding students and non-payment of allowances
The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) was implemented by the government to allow for students from poor and “missing-middle” households to fund their tertiary studies. On 8 September 2023, IOL reported that more than 14 000 eligible students were wrongly defunded.
Since NSFAS introduced payments of allowances via their 4 distributing partners in June 2023 (Coinvest, eZaga, Norraco and Tenet Technology), students have encountered countless problems, including: high bank costs, difficulty in using the platforms and non-payment of allowances used for food, personal products and transportation.
3. Loadshedding getting increasingly worse
Moneyweb reported that “load shedding in 2023 worse than the last eight years combined“. From January 2023 to date (8 September 2023), there has only been ONE day without any loadshedding. South African’s are having to get used to going hours without electricity, all in the name of “planned maintenance” and “breakdowns” taking place at power utilities across the country.
4. High unemployment rate
South Africa has one of the highest unemployment rates in the world, recorded at 32.9% in the first quarter of 2023. Youth, between the ages of 15 and 34 years old are the group most affected by unemployment, at a rate of 46.5%. Before every general election, the ANC promises to create millions of jobs, yet this never seems to materialise.
5. Petrol price increase leading to food price increase
The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) announced yet another price increase for petrol and diesel, from 6 September 2023. Due to an increase in international petrol prices and a weaker rand, unfortunately South Africans are having to dig deeper into their pockets to fill up their tank.
Petrol and diesel price increases are not in isolation – people can expect food and other essentials to increase in price too.
How can these issues be fixed?
Something has to change – we cannot as a nation continue to live with rolling blackouts, delays in grant payments to the poor and joblessness.
That leaves the question – will you vote the ANC in the next elections or do you think another political party would be better for the country?
Types of SASSA grants:
SRD R350 Grant Care Dependency Grant Child Support Grant Foster Child Grant
Disability Grant Older Persons Grant Grant-In-Aid War Veterans Grant
You may be interested in reading about:
Types of Grants How to Apply Status Check
Payment Dates Jobs & Vacancies Updates & Blog Contact SASSA
QUERIES AND CONTACT
For any further queries, please contact SASSA directly:
Contact the SASSA Toll Free Call centre on: 0800 60 10 11
Contact the SASSA Head Office on: 012 400 2322
Email SASSA Head Office at: Grantsenquiries@sassa.gov.za
Contact details of SASSA offices across the country: SASSA contact details