State of readiness, for Covid-19 Social Relief of Distress grant applications, announced

Systems for the special Covid-19 Social Relief of Distress grant announced by President Ramaphosa recently have passed the final stage of development.

The social development portfolio comprising the Department of Social Development (DSD), National Development Agency (NDA) and South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) announced its readiness for implementation.

Minister Lindiwe Zulu will launch the opening of the application process on Monday, 11 May.

SASSA has reported that it has been inundated with enquiries from the public about the application process and thanked the public for its patience during these difficult times. SASSA added it had to ensure it puts all the required controls in place so the grant is only accessed by deserving and qualifying individuals.

In the process of developing the required technology, a new Whatsapp number has been secured for applications and Zulu will later detail how this will work.

A health department WhatsApp platform was used in the initial test and 15 000 applications were loaded onto the system. Qualifying applications received during the test phase will be processed by 15 May.

Applicants without smart phones will also be able to access this new platform through a short message service (SMS) using the unstructured supplementary data service (USSD). Volunteers and community development workers will be deployed to assist applicants who have no access to technology.

Manual applications will not be done at SASSA offices and there will be no need to fill in paper application forms.

The platform to be used will be electronic in compliance with the State of Disaster requirements, including social distancing. Another consideration was the speed at which online applications can be taken and processed as opposed to using a manual system.

The dire public need requires government to act quickly to address the immediate challenges facing the country and its people.

Applicants are cautioned not to provide their banking details to anyone to avoid scams. SASSA said it will only request information once the application has been approved.

Beneficiaries and applicants should never give their PIN number or the CVV number on the back of the banking card to anyone – not even SASSA.

Once applications are approved, SASSA will request confirmation of bank accounts through a secure site. This will also be done electronically.

Applicants have the right to request confirmation that a request is from SASSA in order to protect themselves. Payment will be effected through deposits made directly into an approved applicant’s bank account.

Approved applicants who do not have a bank account will receive their money through a money transfer.

SASSA reserves the right to validate the information provided by applicants with other public and private databases to prevent misrepresentation and potential fraud. Applicants will be required to agree to this condition before their applications are processed.

The launch date coincides with the reopening of SASSA local offices on Monday. Only a third of employees will return to work and therefore SASSA services on offer will be limited. The number of clients served at local offices will be very limited.

SASSA local offices will therefore be attending to specific grants on specific days only:

• Monday and Tuesday: Old age grants.
• Wednesday and Thursday: Child support grants and foster care grants.
• Friday: Administration for staff to attend to matters flowing over from the previous days.

Under lockdown level 4 no disability grants, care dependency grants or grant in aid applications will be done, as access to health facilities is restricted to emergency cases and Covid -19 cases only.

This means that no medical assessments, which are a legislated requirement prior to an application for these grants, can be undertaken.

Zulu will clarify how SASSA is going to deal with lapsed temporary disability grants. Lapsed care dependency grants will also be clarified in line with the Government Gazette.

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