The South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) says it is now using biometrics technology to verify applicants after seeing a significant spike in the number of people applying for the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant.
Sassa said 17 million people had applied for the R370 monthly payout as of September, but the organisation clarified that it was not alarmed as many of the applicants were “chancers”.
About 10 million jobless people rely on the SRD grant, which was introduced as the R350 support mechanism during the coronavirus pandemic.
The SRD grant is designed to support those in need who are unable to provide for their families' most basic necessities.
The eligibility criteria include being a South African citizen, permanent resident, or refugee registered with Home Affairs, currently residing within South Africa, aged 18 to 60 years, unemployed, not receiving any social grant, UIF payment, or NSFAS funding, and having an income below a certain threshold as determined by SASSA.
SASSA spokesperson Paseka Letsatsi told Newzroom Afrika that applicants underwent a verification process, and the final count would be lower since not everyone will qualify due to not meeting the criteria.
He added that they have identified fraudsters attempting to cheat the system using stolen identities and that such cases had been reported to the SA Police Services.
He also explained that they had changed their systems, which previously allowed grant recipients to change their bank details and cellphone numbers, saying people would now only be able to do this after using facial biometrics linked to Home Affairs to verify their identity.
“However, the fraudsters have identified a gap and go into the system to change phone numbers to theirs so that the money reflects on their number when deposited instead of going to the rightful beneficiary,” he said in an interview with local broadcaster Newzroom Afrika.
Letsatsi said the new technology is aimed at alleviating the burden on those who do not have smartphones but want to change their accounts.
Of the 17.2 million applications received, the highest number came from KwaZulu-Natal with 4.4 million, followed by Gauteng with 3.2 million, and Limpopo with 2.3 million.
Letsatsi said the spike in numbers from some provinces is suspicious; however, they do not want to make any assumptions about why the numbers have jumped. He added that measures will be implemented to identify inconsistencies.
“We don’t want to make an assumption about why the numbers have jumped. Our processes are very clear; they will definitely be able to identify these situations,” he said.
The spokesperson warned there will be serious consequences for those attempting to defraud the system, as SASSA works closely with law enforcement.
“When we pick up this information, we pass it to the law enforcement agencies we work very closely with so they can track and arrest people who are trying to defraud the system,” Letsatsi said.
As of August 2024, Statistics South Africa disclosed that the official unemployment rate in the country was 33.5% in the second quarter of 2024.
According to the Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) results, there was a decrease of 92,000 in the number of employed persons to 16.7 million in the second quarter of 2024, while the number of unemployed increased by 158,000 to 8.4 million compared to the first quarter of the year.