Social security and the dignity of lone mothers in South Africa

The Moving Line Between State Benevolence and Control: Municipal Indigent Programmes in South Africa

“…Child support grants grew from a mere 150,000 beneficiaries in 2000 to ten million recipients in 2011 (RSA, 2014). Grants do make a significant difference, although means tested support continues to stigmatise recipients (Wright et al, 2014). However, it has also been argued that the state welfare system is a form of encadrement/patronage used by the ANC to ensure that it maintains the electoral loyalty of the black poor (Berman, 2016).…”

“…Queuing was also described as stigmatising. (Wright et al, 2014) The number of registered, active indigents Although there may be millions of poor households needing free services, many do not register and many are disqualified technically: for example, backyard shacks or illegal shacks (nonaccount holders) are excluded. The government's view is that the 'most vulnerable societal groupings (women, child-headed households, and the unemployed)' do not register for 'fear of attracting adverse official attention and many are also not aware of these concessions'.…”

“…It is likely that many indigents will also be child support grantees who also queue for long periods to get benefits. Researchers investigating the child support grant (CSG) reported that, for example, ‘The process of applying for CSG was described by many as being detrimental to dignity, as was the opprobrium often associated with their status as CSG recipients’ (Wright et al, 2014).…”

New knowledge on children and young people: A Synthesis of Evidence from the ESRC-DFID Joint Fund for Poverty Alleviation Research

“…When women talked about the impact of receiving the South African CSG on their ability to provide care, there was some evidence that receipt of the grant made it easier to pay fees and for school lunches, which improved children's experience of school. However, respondents also spoke with anger about the low value of the grant compared with the old age grant and how they struggle to meet the expenses associated with children's schooling (Wright et al, 2014b). There is also evidence from Timaeus from South Africa that better targeted support services and grants for children affected by HIV would improve school performance, as would easier access to disability grants (McEwen and Woolard (2012)), and some qualitative evidence of this -for example grant money being spent on school uniforms (Timaeus and Moultrie, 2012).…”