Article by: Dumisane Dube
President Cyril Ramaphosa announced new plans which he believes will enable socio-economic growth during the State of the Nation Address on Thursday.
In a two-hour long speech, Ramaphosa set out government’s plans to kickstart the country’s economy following two years of disruptions by the Covid-19 pandemic, the extension of the R350 social relief grant was announced.
He said the R350 SRD Grant has provided support to more than 10 million unemployed people who were most vulnerable to the impact of the pandemic.
“Mindful of the proven benefits of the grant, we will extend the R350 Social Relief of Distress Grant for one further year, to the end of March 2023,” he told MPs at the Cape Town City Hall.
According to Ramaphosa a further extension beyond March 2023 could be challenging as government faces “fiscal constraints”.
“As much as it has had a substantial impact, we must recognise that we face extreme fiscal constraints. A fiscal crisis would hurt the poor worst of all through the deterioration of the basic services on which they rely,” he said.
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