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The South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) says it has seen an increase in the number of rejection rates among Covid-19 grant applications.
This can be attributed to several factors, such as the mismatch between the details provided by the beneficiaries and the reliance on information derived from data sets obtained from institutions such as the FIU and SARS databases, among others, the group said. in a statement on Wednesday (September 30).
In August there was a significant increase in the number of rejections, as SASSA implemented an additional step of proof of resources applications against banks. This was done to ensure that the requirement that applicants have no income was met.
However, following a compromise with the Department of Social Development, it was agreed to reconsider the use of the means test through banks as a criterion for determining eligibility, Sassa said.
This will affect about 1.9 million people who have been receiving the grant to date, but were rejected in August, he said.
“The legal framework that supports the reconsideration of the use of bank resource tests is being modified by the Department of Social Development and will be published in the coming days.
“These amendments will clarify the qualification criteria and help SASSA ensure that deserving citizens receive the support to which they are entitled, for the duration of this grant.”
The Auditor General of South Africa (AG) has identified around 30,000 undeserving applicants who received the grant without meeting the qualification criteria as they were receiving financial support from the government through other Covif-19 initiatives.
In response to this finding, SASSA reviewed and strengthened its controls regarding the evaluation of applications.
“Applications are considered on their individual merits month to month, which means that an application can be approved for one month and rejected the following month if, for example, the financial situation changes.
“This has become more frequent with the reduction of the lockdown levels, which allows some sectors of the economy to return to work and therefore reduces the number of citizens with serious problems.”
Sassa said that all applicants whose applications are rejected have the right to appeal the decision.
“Recipients who have been rejected are reminded that they can send their appeals to [email protected](link send email). SASSA is currently receiving some 60,000 appeals that it is handling ”.
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