MINISTER SISISI TOLASHE CALLS FOR REFRAMING OF GRANTS AS INSTRUMENTS FOR SOCIAL PROTECTION AND LABOUR ACTIVATION
Sandton, Gauteng Province, 28 October 2025
Social Development Minister Nokuzola Sisisi Tolashe called for a reimaging of grants as strategic levers for social protection rather than being limited to poverty relief. Minister made these remarks while addressing the first day of Social Protection Colloquium which is currently underway as guided by the theme: “From Grants to Growth: Integrating Social Protection and Income Generating Opportunities.” Hosted by the Department of Social Development, the colloquium congregates policy makers, government decision-makers, and academics to explore how social protection can be effectively linked to income-generating initiatives that foster inclusive economic growth.
Amongst others, its deliberations examine how social grants can serve as a foundation for employment creation, entrepreneurship, and sustainable livelihoods, rather than existing as stand-alone interventions. The Department of Social Development is hosting this colloquium in partnership with the Presidency’s Digital Innovation in the Public Sector and the Digital Service Unit and supported by Genesis Analytics and the Centre for Social Development in Africa, located at the University of Johannesburg. More than 20 million South Africans depend on social grants as income generation measure to alleviate the problem of poverty, unemployment and inequality. In addition to various social grants, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the South African government introduced the R370 Special COVID-19 Social Relief of Distress to reduce economic hardships for unemployed South Africans.
A key consideration at the colloquium is an exploration of the complementary policy levers the government could deploy to strengthen the linkages between social grants and greater labour participation and economic inclusion. Addressing the audience, Minister Tolashe identified the following three pillars that would help reframe grants from poverty relief to social protection: · Recognising that social grants are foundational. A whole-of-government approach is required to support beneficiaries’ economic inclusion.· Embedding linkages between social grant distribution and the informal economy and micro entrepreneurs.· Redesigning social grant distribution to promote labour market participation. In addition, the Minister said that; “With less than five years remaining to achieve the ambitious goals of the National Development Plan Vision 2030 and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development until 2030, we must recognise our progress and the urgent challenges remaining that demand our collective action.
In the next two days, the question uppermost in our minds is: how we redesign our social protection systems so that it does not only provide relief at the time of need but also uplifts and create opportunities for sustainable livelihoods.” The Minister further emphasised the importance of building a forward-looking social protection system, a comprehensive system envisioned in the NDP Vision 2030. She described it as “a system that turns grants into growth, support into opportunities, and recipients into contributors.” The Colloquium continues today, and members of the media are invited to join virtually through the following link:
https://teams.microsoft.com/l/meetup-join/19%3ameeting_NjI4OTU1OTgtNDI4NC00ZGJlLWEyNDctNjdlZjM2NjgxZmE5%40thread.v2/0 context=%7b%22Tid%22%3a%22ee10e5b2-7a1b-47f7-8d14-93921f3bfc4c%22%2c%22Oid%22%3a%2207475c58-3d05-491a-9ab7-a68ce78e8e24%22%7d Date: Wednesday, 29 October 2025Time: 09h00Venue: Gauteng Province Media RSVPs may be directed to Ms Precious Mupenzi on 083 715 0034 / PreciousM@dsd.gov.za
