Cape Town - Social grants will marginally increase across the board, Finance Minister Tito Mboweni has announced on Wednesday during his 2021 budget speech.
The minister said provinces will receive R3.5 billion from the department of social development to improve access to early childhood development services.
An additional R6.3 billion will be allocated towards the extension of the special Covid-19 social relief of distress grant. President Cyril Ramaphosa had announced that the R350 grant would be extended until the end of April.
"In addition, R678.3 million is earmarked for provincial departments of social development and basic education to continue rolling out free sanitary products for learners from low-income households," Mboweni said.
On the increase in social grants; state pension grants and care dependency grants increase by R30 to R1890,
*R30 increase in the war veterans grants to R1910, the child support grant will increase by R10 to R460 and the foster care grant will also increase by R10 to R1050
Mboweni began his speech by acknowledging the tough economic conditions that the country has been under for the past year.
He said that as the vaccine roll-outs begin there was hope that the country would begin a path to economic recovery.
The minister said R10 billion has been budgeted towards vaccine purchase and roll-out for the next two- years.
Mboweni thanked frontline workers for their work in saving people's lives during the coronavirus pandemic.
"We salute all our health care and essential service workers who remain standing at the front line of our fight against Covid-19," Mboweni said.