Extending Social Protection to Children (South Africa)

Organization(s): ILO
Regions: Southern Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa
Country: South Africa
Year: 2016
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Of the 23 million children under the age of 18 in South Africa, about 60 per cent lives in poverty. The Child Support Grant (CSG), introduced in 1998, initially covered only 10 per cent of poor children. Incremental changes in the eligibility criteria and successful awareness-raising campaigns increased the coverage to 11.7 million poor children in 2015, or 85 per cent of the target group. The grant has been shown to have a positive impact on the recipient children and their families. This brief examines South Africa’s experience in extending social protection to children.