South Africa - Social Assistance Programs and Systems Review : Policy Brief (English)

South Africa's social assistance system represents a major intervention by government in addressing the deprivation amongst the country's population. The system is extensive in terms of both the number of people it covers, directly and indirectly, as well as in terms of the amount of scarce resources it consumes. This brife summarizes findings and recommendations from a study that assesses the performance of South Africa's social assistance programs and systems, based on recent national household survey data and program administrative information, in three broad thrusts. Firstly, the study provides a sense of the operation of the social assistance system, the types of benefits it provides through its key programmes, and the tools and administrative systems that support its functioning. Secondly, it reviews the performance of the social assistance system in terms of coverage, targeting, benefit incidence, adequacy, cost-effectiveness, and outcomes. Thirdly, it assesses the extent to which the system is aligned with and equipped to address the so-called “triple challenge” of poverty, inequality, and unemployment as shown by data, and reviews some limitations in the design, delivery systems, and institutional coordination at different administrative levels.