Chair, in response to the question asked by hon Rasmeni I have to say that the two million children who are to be taken up will be progressively registered. They will go into the register and the social assistance safety net over the next three years as a result of this policy change, which allows all children born after 31 December 1993 to access child support grants. The expected number of children who will be taken up this year is 734 000.
The SA Social Security Agency, Sassa, has already started taking applications from qualifying children. As at May 2010, we had already registered and begun the distribution of grants to 276 142 children aged between 15 and 16 years. Of this number, 26 767 are about 16 years old. This represents 41% of the target to be reached, which is one of the largest registrations we have done in such a short space of time. Sassa is in a position to take up the additional children over the next three financial years.
The social assistance grants are government's major poverty alleviation programmes. To date, as we may well be aware, a total of 14,1 million people here in South Africa receive these grants, which are paid on a monthly basis and no longer on a quarterly basis, by the way. We do this in order to alleviate poverty. Sassa and the department are in possession of very good evidence-based knowledge that indicates that indeed this proves to be one of the largest poverty alleviation measures.
This programme is also implemented in partnership with other stakeholders to ensure that we access and reach out to many outstanding people. Departments like Home Affairs, Health and Social Development, our traditional leaders, municipalities, the SAPS - obviously working with Sassa - are some of the stakeholders. The programme is a one-stop government service - Integrated Community Registration Outreach Programme, Icrop - which is intended to ensure that grants are accessible to as many people as possible.
Other poverty alleviation initiatives include the strategy to link existing social grant beneficiaries to sustainable economic opportunities that are available, as well as the conditional extension of child support grants, which we know has been put in place this year. It is intended to ensure that children who receive child support grants remain in school. This programme of ensuring that children remain in school is indeed the ANC-led government's major contribution to ensuring that our children have access to education because we know that education is the most important tool in breaking intergenerational poverty.
As I have already said, the evidence-based research that we have conducted clearly indicates that the various grants contribute positively to school attendance and job seekers - people who are able to get up and look for jobs. It ensures that the poor are able to meet basic needs like food, clothing and so on.
We also have a programme called Icrop, which I referred to earlier on. This programme has ensured that we reach about 200 000 additional people who are able to access social grants.
The conditionality of the social grants has also been introduced as from this year, as we know. This has been done so that we can reach as many people as we should.
This is the response I felt I should give to the two areas of the question that has been asked by the hon member. Thank you very much.
Chairperson, I am satisfied.
Any other follow-up question? We are all satisfied. Hon Bloem, you can't raise your hand now, after everybody is satisfied. [Interjections.] Ask your question, hon member.
Thank you very much, Chairperson. I hear the Minister saying this is part of poverty alleviation. But can the Minister tell us if these social grants are sustainable, and if so, for how long will they be sustainable?
Thank you, hon Chair. I have indicated in this august House before that the social assistance programme, in its entirety and totality, is a poverty alleviation programme. "Alleviation", in simple English, means that we are temporarily alleviating poverty and not really eradicating it. There are other programmes that are intended to really eradicate poverty. This is an intervention mechanism to ensure that our people are able to live.
I have also indicated that this programme has had an impact in that children who receive this kind of grant are able to be enrolled in school. Those who are poor and don't have food, etc, can buy food, clothing and so on. So, this is an intervention mechanism. It is going to be there as long as our people are still suffering and until we have completely eradicated poverty. [Applause.] I thank you.
Programme of integrating different races and teaching different cultures, and putting into practice policy of being united in diversity
29. Mnu D D Gamede (ANC) ubuza uNgqongqoshe wezobuCiko namaSiko:
(1) Ingabe ikhona yini indlela noma uhlelo (a) lokuhlanganisa izinhlanga ezahlukene kunye (b) nokufundisa ngamasiko ohlukene ikakhulu ezindaweni zasemakhaya; uma akunjalo, kutheni; uma kunjalo, ithini imininingwane;
(2) kanti futhi siwuqhuba kanjani umgomo othi sibumbene yize kuno kwehlukana ngempilo (united in our diversity)?