Pretoria - The Minister of Social Development Zola Skweyiya has urged all indigent parents who have children under the age of fifteen years and qualify to apply for the Child Support Grant.
People who qualify for the child support grant include families and couples with an income of less than R4 600 or single parents earning less than R2 300.
In a statement, Minister Skweyiya said Cabinet had last year decided to extend the grant to children aged 15. This is part of the government's effort to continue to tackle child poverty and to shield the poor from the effects of the global economic meltdown, the minister said.
He said the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) started processing applications for children up to the age of 15 years as from 2 January 2009 and by 15 January 2009, a total of 8 421 applications for children aged 14 years had already been taken and processed.
"I appeal to all the parents and care givers to immediately register their children," Minister Skweyiya said, reminding qualifying citizens that even if they do not have Identity Documents, they must go to SASSA offices where they will get assistance.
The applicants will receive an amount of R230 per month.
A recent study which examines the use of the child support grants in poor households and reviews the application process and implementation of the grant from the perspective of those receiving the grant released in October last year, found that child support grants played a vital role in enabling caregivers to access food of sufficient nutritional quality and variety to meet the needs of their children.
The study, which was conducted by UNICEF and released by the minister, targeted caregivers of children up to the age of 13 in low income areas. It noted that the grant acts as a lifeline for many households in the face of high levels of unemployment.
On average the child support grant accounts for 40 percent of reported household income.
The child support grant appears to target the most vulnerable groups including those with limited access to basic services and disadvantaged groups, the recipients are primarily women with lower levels of education than those who are not eligible for the grant.
This is linked to levels of prosperity as those living in poverty are more likely to have lower levels of education, which in turn makes them less likely to find employment and income generation opportunities.
The study further revealed that children in homes receiving child support grants are more likely to attend a creche or preschool than children of the same age group who were not receiving the grant.
