The South African Civil Society Information Service
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question:
How do we make democracy work for the poor?
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question:
How do we make democracy work for the poor?
Karen Peters is advocacy programme manager at the Black Sash. Her Masters dissertation critically analysed the provision of water to low-income households in the Western Cape. Karen holds a BSocSci and a Master of Social Science (Cum Laude) from the University of Cape Town.
Her areas of expertise include water service delivery, cost recovery of municipal services, municipal management, and the social protection system. She has worked as an independent researcher for numerous organisations on service provision and local government.
Karen Peters -
According to the 2008 Budget Speech, currently there are 12.4 million grant beneficiaries in South Africa, with national expenditure on social assistance to the tune of 75.3 billion Rand.
However, despite spending on social security remaining a significant proportion of our GDP, an important segment of the population still slips through the social security net.
What's wrong with the social grants system in South Africa?
To start with, the targeted nature of our social...
