Multi-party Charter promises to raise child grant to the food poverty line
The Multi-party Charter (MPC) has launched its plan to tackle poverty and to protect the vulnerable — a platform that in part reflects the DA’s election manifesto.
The MPC wants to secure socioeconomic development to address inequality and hunger, and create a more equitable and resilient society.
DA leader John Steenhuisen presented the plan outside the Ekurhuleni SA Social Security Agency (Sassa) offices, highlighting the plight of millions of South Africans subjected to a “dysfunctional welfare system mired in corruption and ineptitude”.
“We will increase the child grant to the food poverty line, extending the grant to cover pregnant mothers to support child nutrition goals,” he said.
The MPC promised to expedite medical assessments required for people with disabilities to access disability grants by allowing private doctors to do the medical checks.
“[We] support an increase to the old-age grant, funded by reducing the number of people on social grants through a growing economy that lifts people into jobs and opportunities.”
The MPC also promised to devise and implement a plan to reduce teenage pregnancies, while enforcing maintenance payments to ensure fathers take responsibility for their children and to assist single mothers.
“We will identify social welfare beneficiaries by means testing to ensure interventions reach those genuinely in need, with means testing including indicators such as income status, geographic location, school quintile, net assets, number of dependants and access to basic services. We will increase the number of community-based primary healthcare and social workers to respond to the need for improved welfare services and ensuring every community has access to places of safety.”
The MPC plans to prioritise the fight against gangsterism and drug abuse, to increase the number of rehabilitation facilities for substance abuse and to ensure communities get adequate access to social workers.
“We will also develop a national framework on homelessness and improve links with NGOs to ensure adequate support for people experiencing homelessness, including assistance to reintegrate them into their families/communities.”
On policing, the MPC will increase police visibility in vulnerable communities with high incidences of violent crime.
Education, security and healthcare improvements are on the cards to enhance social mobility and create equality of opportunity.
FOOD PRICE SHOCKS
Steenhuisen revealed plans to broaden the range of food items that are zero-rated for VAT to tackle hunger and malnutrition, ensuring all qualifying households have access to the basket of free basic services.
He announced the targeting of vulnerable groups for protection during food price shocks.
“We will increase support for NGOs and NPOs that deliver vital services on behalf of the state, while allocating a higher number of social workers to densely populated areas based on needs assessments, aiming to increase the social worker to population ratio.”
The MPC promised to revamp the social housing model to create more options near economic centres while promoting low-cost rentals by initiating a pilot rental voucher system. State-owned land, particularly in well-located urban areas, will be redistributed to provide housing for people living in poverty who would otherwise not be able to afford inner-city housing.
“We will increase access to property ownership and affordable housing. The MPC will concentrate on repurposing underused state-owned land for housing. We will pursue new, innovative housing models, building technologies, funding structures and community participation initiatives to improve the quality, affordability and flexibility of housing options in SA.”
Steenhuisen said that while individual parties within the MPC were campaigning on their own merit, with distinct policies, brands and offerings, voters could confidently cast their vote knowing these commitments had been agreed to by all the signatory parties.