SASSA grant recipient reveals shocking reason behind her job-hunting struggle

Thomfuthi Shabangu has spent more than five years relying on the SASSA `Child Support Grant to hold her household together, and she says the money is stretched thinner than ever as she searches for work in one of South Africa’s toughest job markets.

Shabangu, who is in her late thirties and lives in Gauteng, supports between three and five people on her income. The Child Support Grant pays R580 per child per month, but she says it does not come close to meeting her family’s basic needs. By the end of most months, she has nothing left over, and she confirmed that someone in her household has gone without food in the past month.

She rents privately and uses the grant to cover a mix of expenses, but careful budgeting has not been enough to close the gap. Her experience mirrors that of many of the roughly 18 million South Africans who depend on SASSA grants monthly, particularly in Gauteng, one of the three provinces where most recipients live.

Construction background, no work in sight

Unemployment is Shabangu’s biggest financial worry right now. She has experience in construction and general labour, sectors that have shed opportunities amid weak investment and broader economic uncertainty. Determined to change her circumstances, she says she is willing to relocate for the right job, but suitable openings have been hard to find in an economy where unemployment sits above 32 percent.

Shabangu has also tried to access government support beyond her current grant, but the process did not work out in her favour.

What Shabangu wants to see change

Asked what she would change about SASSA if she could, Shabangu did not hesitate: she would like to see the grant amount increased. Even so, she rated the agency’s communication with recipients as very good, and she receives her payments directly into her Nedbank account each month, sparing her the long queues faced by recipients who collect grants in person.

Her story reflects the daily balancing act facing millions of grant recipients nationwide, caught between a grant that provides a lifeline and a job market that offers few ways out.

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