Speaking on behalf of the coalition, dubbed the National Working Group on Social Security, Isabelle Frye, Director of the Studies in Poverty and Inequality Institute (SPII), pointed out that:

‘€œPresident Jacob Zuma acknowledged that social grants remain the main effective form of poverty alleviation’€.

However, Frye, said, ‘€œhe hasn’€™t, at least, announced the extension of the child support grant to children aged 15 to 18, particularly as he stressed the importance of secondary school enrolment’€.

In her submission, lecturer at the Steve Biko Centre for Bioethics at Wits University, Marlise Richter, told the commission that, ‘€œpeople with HIV are defaulting on their antiretroviral treatment, in order to retain disability grants’€. A few studies have shown that once they regain their health and their CD 4 counts improve, social security stops issuing grants to people living with HIV and AIDS.    

The burden of HIV/AIDS has led to an increasing number of orphans and child-headed households in the country. But surprisingly, Statistician-General Pali Lehohla, failed to give a national figure of such families.

‘€œWe haven’€™t done headship surveys that reveal that kind of phenomenon as a concept’€, he said.

Speaking for the Western Cape Department of Social Services, department director, Sharon Follentine said   ‘€œwe reach 800 child-headed households. But, is that the sum total of the child-headed households? I cannot tell you that’€.

Painting a global picture of the reach of social security in the province, Follentine said:

‘€œWe have 914  314 people receiving grants in the Western Cape. Of that number, 530  093 (are) children. Disability grants ‘€“ 146  465 people’€.

The Steve Biko Centre for Bioethics’€™ Marlise Richter, called for a basic income grant and other poverty alleviation programs that will include sex workers.

‘€œMost sex workers remain in this industry because they don’€™t have many other choices. In terms of recommendations, these (poverty alleviation) programs should target sex workers, specifically with job creation opportunities, implementing a basic income grant and decriminalising sex work’€, she appealed.

The submissions came just before violent demonstrations against poor public service delivery and unemployment in various townships across the country.