Draft amendment to Regulations indicates SRD grant to end in March 2024 whilst value and beneficiary numbers eroded significantly

The Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ) expresses concern over the Department of Social Development's draft amendments to the Covid-19 Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant, which only extend the grant's expiry to March 2024 without increasing its R350 monthly value. The IEJ argues that the lack of funding in the 2023/24 National Budget suggests a plan to withdraw the grant, which would exacerbate food insecurity amid 13.4% food inflation in January 2023. Furthermore, the IEJ highlights that beneficiary numbers have dropped by approximately three million since March 2022 due to exclusionary regulations and flawed application systems. The IEJ calls for the grant to be retained indefinitely and transitioned into a comprehensive basic income support system, asserting that National Treasury has the fiscal space to do so following a R94 billion revenue overrun.

• The Department of Social Development's draft amendments only extend the SRD grant's expiry date from March 2023 to March 2024, leaving the monthly grant value unchanged at R350.
• The absence of funding for the grant after March 2024 in the 2023/24 National Budget indicates a potential intention to terminate the grant in one year.
• The number of SRD grant beneficiaries has decreased by approximately three million as of February 2023 compared to the peak of 10.9 million in March 2022, attributed to exclusionary regulations and flawed administrative systems.
• The IEJ contends that National Treasury's claim of insufficient resources is false, citing a R94 billion revenue overrun in the recent Budget that could be used to address hunger instead of aggressive debt reduction.
• The removal of the grant or failure to increase its value would worsen food insecurity, especially given that food inflation reached 13.4% in January 2023.

APA

Institute for Economic Justice (2023). Draft amendment to Regulations indicates SRD grant to end in March 2024 whilst value and beneficiary numbers eroded significantly. https://iej.org.za/press-room/statements/draft-amendment-to-regulations-indicates-srd-grant-to-end-in-march-2024-whilst-value-and-beneficiary-numbers-eroded-significantly/

Chicago

Institute for Economic Justice. Draft amendment to Regulations indicates SRD grant to end in March 2024 whilst value and beneficiary numbers eroded significantly. 2023. https://iej.org.za/press-room/statements/draft-amendment-to-regulations-indicates-srd-grant-to-end-in-march-2024-whilst-value-and-beneficiary-numbers-eroded-significantly/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Institute for Economic Justice |title=Draft amendment to Regulations indicates SRD grant to end in March 2024 whilst value and beneficiary numbers eroded significantly |date=14 March 2023 |url=https://iej.org.za/press-room/statements/draft-amendment-to-regulations-indicates-srd-grant-to-end-in-march-2024-whilst-value-and-beneficiary-numbers-eroded-significantly/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{instituteforeconomicjustice2023draft, author = {{Institute for Economic Justice}}, title = {{Draft amendment to Regulations indicates SRD grant to end in March 2024 whilst value and beneficiary numbers eroded significantly}}, publisher = {Institute for Economic Justice}, year = {2023}, month = mar, url = {https://iej.org.za/press-room/statements/draft-amendment-to-regulations-indicates-srd-grant-to-end-in-march-2024-whilst-value-and-beneficiary-numbers-eroded-significantly/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }