The Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ) and #PayTheGrants, who are represented by the Socio-Economic Rights Institute (SERI), note that the Social Relief of Distress (SRD, R370) grant court case has drawn renewed media attention recently since we lodged our Heads of Argument and the state respondents lodged theirs. The hearing will take place in the Pretoria High Court on 29 and 30 October. We are pleased that the case is progressing following lengthy delays from the respondents. We are looking forward to the opportunity to make our arguments before the Court, as those impacted by these issues will have waited 16 months for the case to be heard, during which time their situation has worsened.
The case challenges various procedural barriers that have been put in place which prevent eligible persons in desperate need from accessing the SRD grant. In addition, we challenge the fact that the grant has been rolled back, both in terms of purchasing power and in terms of the number of people eligible, since it was introduced. This contradicts the government’s constitutional obligation to progressively realise (advance) the right to social assistance within the maximum available resources.
After reviewing their Heads of Argument we are again dismayed by the government’s dismissive attitude towards the rights and needs of impoverished communities, their unwillingness to engage constructively, and their denial of basic realities.
Out of touch with the reality of adult poverty
The government’s responses show they are out of touch with the realities and experiences of SRD grant applicants and beneficiaries. DSD and SASSA’s Heads of Argument go so far as to suggest that the overly restrictive online-only application system is good because people can apply for the grant from their own “comfortable homes”.
The government has determined that only people who have less than R624 flowing into their bank account in a month (from any source, for any purpose) can receive the R370 SRD grant. According to Statistics South Africa, a person needs R796 per month in 2024 just to afford enough food. Anyone with income less than this objectively cannot afford housing, internet access, electricity, data, transport, and clothing. They most certainly are not living in a “comfortable home” and by the government’s own criteria, they cannot afford the costs associated with applying for the SRD grant, and thus face insurmountable barriers to access. The government fails to address—even to deny—this plain fact in their response.
Inconsistency in government positions
The government says one thing publicly and the opposite in their court papers. We have heard time and again from the President, the Minister of Social Development as well as the Minister of Finance that the SRD grant will not be removed, and will form the foundation for a more expansive system of basic income. Yet, government continues to allege in their response to our case that the grant is “temporary”, and can be withdrawn at any time. The papers filed by the National Treasury deny that the President’s clear commitments, including in two SONAs, have any bearing on official government policy. DSD and SASSA now argue, in their heads of argument, that all the public statements by the President and the Minister of Social Development over the last two to three years about retaining and improving the SRD grant were just “what has been said by the ANC during their rally for the elections”. Government is trying to have their cake and eat it by publicly advancing policy positions in line with the Constitution and then behind the scenes claiming it is not bound to them.
Even if it were true that there is no publicly stated government policy on the future of the SRD grant (it is not)—that in itself would be unacceptable and threaten the advancement of constitutional rights. Internal squabbles between government departments are no justification for failing to uphold basic rights and are of less-than-zero interest to the vulnerable South Africans to whom they are accountable.
Willfully ignorant of the real-world evidence
The government also claims that the SRD grant remains a response to Covid-19 circumstances (particularly unemployment caused by the pandemic) and that those circumstances are abating. This is patently false. Unemployment was at crisis levels before the pandemic and remains at crisis levels today. 42.6% of working-age adults are unemployed. The vast majority of these have been unemployed for a year or more.
Claims that the SRD grant is temporary because it is designed to respond to circumstances which are temporary or changing cannot be taken seriously. Moreover, even if unemployment was at 4.2% rather than 42% – the unemployed would still have a right to assistance from the state. In any event, the SRD grant is intended to address poverty and hunger experienced by anyone of working age, regardless of their employment status, including for instance unpaid caregivers.
We put up detailed supporting evidence to demonstrate that procedural barriers to access to the SRD grant have been put in place and that these have served to exclude up to 50% of eligible beneficiaries. The government has not engaged with this evidence at all and has instead just brazenly denied the facts, without supplying any supporting evidence of their own. This shows a lack of accountability and disinterest in evidence-based debate. SRD grant beneficiaries and the South African public deserve much better from their elected officials and public servants.
79 individuals provided supporting affidavits when this case was launched, detailing how they have been affected personally by the injustices in the administration of the grant—for many it has meant going hungry. The government simply ignores these testimonies, failing to acknowledge them at all in their responses. DSD and SASSA—the agencies charged with helping the most vulnerable in our country—at no point show any sympathy or concern in their court papers for the plight of these impacted individuals.
Despite what the respondents claim, the relief we seek is not to get the court to set the value of the grant. We are not asking the state to implement our preferred policies. We are simply asking for the government to implement its own policy, in line with constitutional prescripts, rather than undermining it. The remedy we seek is for the Court to direct the government to develop a reasonable plan that provides for the grant on more than an annual basis, taking into account relevant cost of living factors and other real-world evidence of need; and seek orders remedying the unlawful aspects of the SRD grant administration.
These are the bare minimum steps the government can take towards fulfilling its responsibilities to the millions of adults in South Africa who face daily poverty and hunger, are shut out of the labour market through no fault of their own, and will continue to be for at least the medium-term. We look forward to the Court providing clarity on the rights of grant beneficiaries.
[ENDS]
All papers filed to date can be accessed below:
- IEJ and #PTG’s founding affidavit
- DSD’s answering affidavit
- SASSA’s supporting affidavit
- Minister of Finance’s answering affidavit
- IEJ and #PTG’s replying affidavit
- IEJ and #PTG’s Heads of Argument
- SASSA and DSD’s Heads of Argument
- Minister of Finance’s Heads of Argument
For media inquiries, please contact:
- Dalli Weyers | IEJ | dalli.weyers@iej.org.za | 082 460 2093
- Elizabeth Raiters | #PTG | elizabeth@paythegrants.org.za | 078 617 5489
Amaarah is a Junior Programme Officer in the Rethinking Economics for Africa project. She is currently studying towards her Masters in Applied Development Economics at Wits University. 
Dr James Musonda is the Senior Researcher on the Just Energy Transition at the IEJ. He is also the Principal Investigator for the Just Energy Transition: Localisation, Decent Work, SMMEs, and Sustainable Livelihoods project, covering South Africa, Ghana, and Kenya.
Dr Basani Baloyi is a Co-Programme Director at the IEJ. She is a feminist, development economist and activist. She gained her research experience while working on industrial policy issues in academia, at the Centre For Competition, Regulation and Economic Development (CCRED) and Corporate Strategy and Industrial Development (CSID) Unit.
Dr Andrew Bennie is Senior Researcher in Climate Policy and Food Systems at the IEJ. He has extensive background in academic and civil society research, organising, and activism. Andrew has an MA in Development and Environmental Sociology, and a PhD in Sociology on food politics, the agrarian question, and collective action in South Africa, both from the University of the Witwatersrand.
Juhi holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Relations and Sociology from Wits University and an Honours degree in Development Studies from the University of Cape Town. Her current research focus is on social care regimes in the South African context, with a particular focus on state responses to Early Childhood Development and Long-Term Care for older persons during the COVID-19 pandemic. Her other research areas include feminist economics, worlds of work and the care economy.
Bandile Ngidi is the Programme Officer for Rethinking Economics for Africa. Bandile has previously worked at the National Minimum Wage Research Initiative and Oxfam South Africa. He holds a Masters in Development Theory and Policy from Wits University. He joined the IEJ in August 2018. Bandile is currently working on incubating the Rethinking Economics for Africa movement (working with students, academics and broader civil society). 
Liso Mdutyana has a BCom in Philosophy and Economics, an Honours in Applied Development Economics, and a Masters in Applied Development Economics from Wits University. His areas of interest include political economy, labour markets, technology and work, and industrial policy. Through his work Liso aims to show the possibility and necessity of economic development that prioritises human wellbeing for everyone.
Joan Stott holds a Bachelor of Business Science in Economics and a Master’s in Economics from Rhodes University. She brings to the IEJ a wealth of experience in public finance management, policy development, institutional capacity-building, and advancing socioeconomic and fiscal justice.
Siyanda Baduza is a Junior Basic Income Researcher at IEJ. He holds a BSc in Economics and Mathematics, an Honours degree in Applied Development Economics, and is currently completing a Master’s degree in Applied Development Economics at the University of the Witwatersrand. Siyanda’s research focuses on the impacts of social grants on wellbeing, with a particular focus on the gendered dynamics of this impact. His interests include applied micro-economics, policy impact evaluation, labour markets, gender economics, and political economy. He is passionate about translating economic research into impactful policy.
Shikwane is a Junior Programme Officer at IEJ focusing on civil society support and global governance in the G20. He has a background in legal compliance, IT contracting and student activism. He holds degrees in Political Studies and International Relations, as well as an LLB, from the University of the Witwatersrand.
Dr Tsega is a Senior Researcher focusing on Women’s Economic Empowerment within the G20. She examines gender equity in economic policy, with expertise in food systems and small enterprise development. She holds a PhD in development studies from the University of the Western Cape, an MA in Development Economics, and degrees in Development Studies and Economics from UNISA and Addis Ababa University.
Nerissa is a G20 Junior Researcher at IEJ, focusing on advancing civil society priorities within the G20 framework. She bridges data, research, and policy to advance inclusive economic frameworks. She is completing a Master’s in Data Science (e-Science) at the University of the Witwatersrand, and holds Honours and Bachelor’s Degrees in International Relations with distinction. She has worked as a Research Fellow at SAIIA and a Visiting Research Fellow at Ipea in Brazil.
Dr Mzwanele is a Senior Researcher supporting South Africa’s G20 Sherpa with policy research. He holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Birmingham and an MSc from the University of the Witwatersrand. His work covers open macroeconomics, trade, finance, and higher education policy, and he has published widely on inequality, unemployment, household debt and higher education curriculum reform.
Kamal is the Project Lead for IEJ’s G20 work, focusing on sovereign debt and development finance. He holds a BComm (Hons) in Applied Development Economics from the University of the Witwatersrand and an Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters in Economic Policies for the Global Transition. He has worked with SCIS, UNCTAD and co-founded Rethinking Economics for Africa.