SASSA Grant increases from 1 October 2023

South Africa | 10 October 2023

There was a hike in social grants on the 1st of October as expected and grant recipients had mixed reviews.

When asking 83-year-old Nodoli Malambile if she was satisfied with the R10 increase in social grants, this was her response:

“A R10 increase is not much at all because there is too much that money needs to be used for. The money does not last at all because groceries are expensive, but it is better than nothing.”

This is what 16-year-old social grant recipient, Xola Lengisi had to say about the grant increase:

“I am not satisfied with the mere R10 increase in social grants. It is not enough as the cost of living is high, there is an increase in the inflation rate, loadshedding has forced us to find alternative ways of generating electricity, which is quite expensive. School essentials are a bargaining factor that can also be expensive. The government has failed to meet our needs, we are only dependent on the social grant, which is not enough, and people who are only dependent on social grants, with no jobs need a higher increase on social grants.”

A budget of R66 billion has been allocated to the Department of Social Development, and R30 billion out of this amount will be used to fund inflation-linked increases for other social grants. The remaining R36 billion will be used to fund the Covid-19 Social Relief of Distress Grant (SRD Grant), which will be extended to 31 March 2024.

The following are the new amounts:

The Older Persons Grant has increased to R2090 for people between 60 and 74 years old and it increased to R2110 for those who are 75 years and older (R10 increase each).
The Disability Grant has increased to R2090 (R10 increase).
Child Support Grant increased to R510 (R10 increase).
Child Support Grant Top-Up is still R250 (R0 increase).
Foster Child Grant has increased to R1130 (R10 increase).
The Care Dependency Grant has increased to R2090 (R10 increase).
War Veterans Grant increased to R2110 (R10 increase).
The Grant-In-Aid has increased to R510 (R10 increase).