As President Cyril Ramaphosa prepares to announce additional economic and social relief measures as part of the government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, child grant recipients say they are hoping for increased support.
Their sentiment is echoed by a group of academics and others. They say Ramaphosa should increase the Child Support Grant by at least R500 for a period of six months.
The child support grant is currently at R445 and reaches just over 12 million children.
Child grant recipients say the lockdown has worsened their situation.
An unemployed and single mother of three in Vosloorus, near Johannesburg, Mamautsoe Dlamini says “When they are at school, they get a food parcel. It’s much better. We just give them R2 for snacks with the relief of the full meals provided at school. But now with this R400, I must take care of everything including the snacks they want and the situation is frustrating me, and as you know, a frustrated person can’t think clearly.”
President Cyril Ramaphosa will address the nation this evening on additional economic and social relief measures that form part of the national response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The President’s address flows from recent deliberations at Cabinet, the National Coronavirus Command Council, the President’s Coordinating Council, and the National Economic Development and Labour Council, among others.
The Presidency will in the course of the day announce the time for the President’s address which will be broadcast on radio and television and will be streamed live.
In the past few days, President Ramaphosa held several virtual meetings with different stakeholders, in a bid to intensify the country’s response to the pandemic.
It all started on Friday with social partners represented at NEDLAC. This meeting considered scaling up financial support to vulnerable households during the lockdown period.
On Saturday the virtual meeting of the President’s Coordinating Council agreed on the need for a risk-adjusted approach to the resumption of economic activity at the end of the lockdown.
On Monday the virtual Cabinet meeting discussed a need for an economic reconstruction plan after days of less economic activity in the country. The meeting also pondered an economic recovery plan for municipalities adversely affected by the lockdown. And this evening, the President will brief the nation on all the agreements reached to save the economy.
SABC political Editor, Mzwai Mbeje gives a preview of what to expect:
Call for solidarity
Meanwhile, the United Nations has called on all South Africans to support government’s efforts to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.
Resident Coordinator of the United Nations in the country, Bekele Thomas has described the outbreak as unprecedented and called for generosity, kindness and solidarity.
“We, the United Nations in South Africa support the clarion call of President Cyril Ramaphosa for the whole society, a whole government approach to the pandemic. The pandemic is a common enemy. Let us unite to fight. The COVID pandemic requires us all to take action.”
