South African Social Security Agency and Department 2007/8 Annual Report & Strategic Plan briefings
Social Development
09 March 2007
Meeting Summary
A summary of this committee meeting is not yet available.
Meeting report
SOCIAL
DEVELOPMENT PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE
9 March 2007
SOUTH AFRICAN SOCIAL SECURITY AGENCY AND DEPARTMENT 2007/8 ANNUAL REPORT &
STRATEGIC PLAN BRIEFINGS
Chairperson: Ms T Tshivhase (ANC)
Documents handed out:
South
African Social Security Agency (SASSA) Strategic Plan 2007/8-2009/10
National
Treasury document on Retirement Reform
Budget Hearings:
Social Security by Department of Social Development
SUMMARY
The South African Social Security Agency presented a brief overview,
including its mandate of ensuring the provision of a comprehensive social
security service against vulnerability and poverty within the constitutional
and legislative framework. It set out its vision, mission and values, the
legislation governing it and key objectives and outlined its achievements in
its first year in terms of expenditure of its establishment, operational costs
and the integration of social assistance administration and payment services.
It also addressed issues of grant fraud with regard to public servants, as well
as its projected budget for the 2007/8 and 2009/10 financial years.
The Department of Social Development gave a presentation on its progress on
social development this included pending legislative policy and regulations, an
overview of the comprehensive social security system and retirement policy
reform.
Members raised concerns on the transfer of social security services when
provincial borders had been moved, why there seemed to be a delay in
prosecuting public servants accused of fraud, and how the fraud matters were
being dealt with. Questions were also raised about the Unemployment Insurance
Fund (UIF), children’s grants, foster care, disability payments, medical
schemes and retirement schemes. They asked about the relationship, and the
seeming disarray, with the Department of Home Affairs with regard to those eligible
for grants. Further questions related to grants that were available to war
veterans. The Social Security Agency was asked to provide written details of
the debt recovery programme.
MINUTES
South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) Briefing
Mr D Plaatjes, Acting CEO, SASSA presented the progress of the
establishment of the agency. During 2006/07 80% of resources was
spent on establishing the agency, on operational issues and integration of the
social assistance administration and payment. In terms of internal audit and
risk management, 15 178 fraudulent public servants had been identified, of
which 2 258 had been convicted, and acknowledgments of debt had been signed and
money was being recovered. 86 000
indemnity applications had been processed. 71 038 applicants had been granted
indemnity while 8 693 had been denied.
In the area of corporate services 6 000 grant administration staff were transferred from the National Department and nine
Provincial Departments to SASSA, while 300 staff had been recruited. Most of
the executive and senior management positions had been filled. Human resources
policies were in place and a skills audit had begun. Information and
Communication Technology (ICT), communications and marketing and finance were
highlighted. Customer service emphasised a two-day
turnaround time of grant access, successfully implemented in the Eastern Cape,
with a roll-out to other provinces. In relation to strategy and business
development, the head office had been established, regional offices were now
set up in seven of the nine provinces, a strategic plan for 2006 to2010 had
been drawn and there was regular monitoring of processes.
In terms of service delivery trends, the agency had seen an overall growth in
grants of 0.5% per month from April 2006 to January 2007. Old Age grants
expenditure had grown by 0.1% per month, Permanent Disability Grants by 0.2%,
Temporary Disability by 2.3%, Foster Care by 1.7%, Care Dependency by 0.7% and
Child Support by 0.7%. The 2007/08 to
2009/10 strategic priorities were laid out under a number of programmes relating to the office of the CEO, Internal
audit and risk management, corporate services, communications and marketing,
finance, information and communication technology and customer services and
strategy and business development.
Mr R Poyurs, CFO, SASSA
explained the agency’s budget spending and projected budget for the current
financial year ending April 2007 and the MTEF period to 2010.
Discussion
Mr T Masutha (ANC)
asked why SASSA only had established offices in seven of the nine provinces.
Mr Plaatjes said that head
offices were set up in all provinces, but the agency faced the problem of
logistics in terms of building space. He indicated that this was a remnant of
the past where different departments shared office space. This was being
addressed
Mr Masutha asked what SASSA’s responsibility was in relation to contractors, such
as paypoint operators.
Ms B Rankin, Executive Manager:
Corporate Services SASSA replied that the agency had commenced with a process
of looking at relevancy of contracts and was now analysing
the financial implications of these contracts. She added that some contracts
had already been ceded to SASSA, such as in Limpopo.
Mr Masutha questioned the
process of litigation of fraudulent grant claims. He asked what the Agency’s
relationship was with the Department of Home Affairs, given the latter’s
current state of disarray. He added that many people were using fraudulent
identity documents to access social grants.
Mr Plaatjes replied that
the Agency was working closely with the Department to prevent fraud and a task
team had been set up. Challenges were faced when ID numbers did not match and
where the same number had been issued to more than one person, The agency was tasked with a social
responsibility that should not inconvenience people, particularly those who
should have access to grants.
Mr K Morwamoche (ANC) asked
when all vacant posts would be filled in the Agency and what the status was in
terms of the Auditor General’s report on underspending.
Mr Plaatjes replied that
the Committee had to bear in mind that the agency had not completed its first
financial year and most of its expenditure during that time was spent on
setting up the agency.
Mr Morwamoche said that
many frontline staff, particularly in the deep rural areas, did not have the
new documentation on grants and asked why there were different implementation
procedures in different provinces. He pointed out that people wanting to access
a disability grant had to have a letter from a doctor. While in the Eastern
Cape, this was working well, a province like Limpopo
did not have enough doctors to meet this need.
Mr Plaatjes replied that
the Agency was looking at best practices and the Eastern Cape model was the
best for the time being, but was not without its problems. The Agency was in
the process of employing doctors to evaluate claims.
Ms X Makasi (ANC) said she was happy with the
performance of the agency and hoped the difficulties would be ironed out. In
terms of prosecuting fraud, she asked why there was a discrepancy between the
number of public servants identified as committing fraud and the small number
that had been convicted. She asked what the situation was in regard to
officials who had signed acknowledgments of debt, whether they were still
employed and what the criteria was for granting indemnity.
Mr Plaatjes replied that
250 cases had been finalised in 17 centres, and the Agency was solving the problem by prioritising cases and making sure the National Prosecuting
Authority had the correct paperwork. Indemnity was granted in cases of poor
people where the money could not be recovered, but the grant had been removed.
He said that the Agency’s overarching responsibility was not to cause additional
hardship. The Agency had identified R34 million of public servant fraud. R5
million had been recovered of which R1 million was fully paid back.
Mr J Sibanyoni (ANC)
mentioned that there had been a change in provincial boundaries and asked when
would social services be taken over by the new province.
Mr Plaatjes replied that
the services had been transferred and beneficiaries did have access to
information on grants.
The Chairperson asked what the position was on social workers accessing foster
grants.
Ms S Koloti, Acting
General Manager: Customer Care, SASSA said the agency would investigate and
report back to the committee.
Mr Masuthu asked about the
Agency’s capacity of monitoring grants, as there were not enough social workers
to go door-to-door to establish whether people existed.
Ms L Bosch, General Manager SASSA said that foster monitoring and
capacity development was underway.
Mr Morwamoche asked about
the over expenditure and savings in various provinces and asked whether
consultants were being employed when the agency could train its own staff. The
Committee objected to consultants simply becoming overpaid public servants.
Mr Plaatjes said that the
Agency was undertaking a review on staffing, followed by a skills audit and
implementing training programmes. In relation to the
two-day turnaround time of accessing a grant, a lot of training had taken place
and in some provinces it had been implemented
Ms Rankin added that the Agency was vetting staff and validating personal
information. The Agency was working with the National Intelligence Agency to
vet the executive management and this process would move down through other
levels.
Mr Poyurs made comments in
regard to over and under expenditure. He noted that the budget was lodged with
the national agency and, although funds might be earmarked for a particular
province funds, they could be shifted around.
Mr L Nzimande asked about
grants to war veterans as the grant was restrictive as to the age at which it
could be accessed.
Mr Plaatjes said there had
been a sharp decrease in people accessing war veteran grants, but that the age
issue was a policy discussion and should be referred to the Department.
Mr M Waters (DA) said he had a question relating to
when the vetting of rank and file agency staff would take place.
Mr Masutha interjected that
Mr Waters had not been present throughout the
presentation and therefore should not have the right to ask questions. He
remarked that the Committee must be presented with the agency’s debt recovery programme in writing.
The Chairperson concurred with this suggestion.
Department of Social development (DSD) : Briefing
on social security
Mr S Jehoma, DDG: Department of Social Development (DSD)
presented a paper on the pending regulations and policies, the Department's
package of services, including income poverty, service poverty, asset poverty
and special needs and social insurance. He set out the government’s three
pillar social security framework. The first tier related to social assistance
in terms of education, healthcare, potable water and electricity accessibility.
Challenges faced included the recognition of a gap in social assistance of
vulnerable people between the ages 14 and 60, the need for support to children
between 14 to 16 years old and people with chronic conditions. He pointed out
that government programmes for water and electricity
were on track. Progress on pillar two covered social
insurance for retirement provisions, social health insurance, the Road Accident
Fund, Unemployment Insurance fund and work-related injuries or diseases.
Pillar three covered voluntary contributions for benefits over and above
pillars one and two, such as additional retirement annuities. The Department
had completed a thorough review of retirement provisions and the findings were
set out. The remainder of the slides dealt with social health insurance, road
accident fund and other disability funds.
Discussion
The Chairperson commented that all citizens had to facilitate social
change to the country and the Department’s programmes
seemed to providing the way to do this.
Ms F Batyi (ID) asked for clarity on the pension
reform programme, asking whether in the case of a
person who contributed and died shortly after retiring, the benefits would go
to the dependents.
Mr Jehoma said that
dependents would receive the pension as a survivor’s benefit.
Mr Morwamoche asked about
UIF monitoring, particularly in those cases where it had been deducted but was
never paid to the Department.
Mr Jehoma said that the
Department was looking into the lack of compliance.
Mr Morwamoche said that
people did not save for their retirement because the country’s tax laws penalised them for this.
Mr Jehoma said that middle
and high income earners were normally the individuals that contributed to
private retirement funds, for they received tax breaks. This should be seen as
a subsidy from the government.
Mr Masutha said there
seemed to be a perverse disparity between private and public retirement
beneficiaries, and he asked for statistics on this. He questioned why there
would be a consolidation of private retirement funds in the advent of a
voluntary contribution public fund.
Mr Jehoma responded that
social development was charged with meeting the gaps between public and private
funds. He said much of the contribution made to private funds was diminished by
administrative costs and when the benefit was paid out, the amount was far
lower than expected. He said the consolidation could be seen as a forced
process as beneficiaries would remove their funds and place it in the public
fund as a result of the greater return.
Mr D Mabena (ANC) asked
what the monitoring process was over guardians of children who were eligible
for the Children’s Grant and what access the children had to legal advice on
the use of their grants as this was often an additional financial burden.
Ms Naicker said that
with regard to the 0-14 year-old benefits the Department was developing a
policy on issues such as determining the poverty line and establishing equity
between the Children’s Grant and foster grants. She pointed to an earlier
question relating to social workers claiming fostering grants, and she said
that the grant was paid to the child and not the guardian. She added that
anyone could foster a child and encouraged the members to do so. She said that
the Department was working with the Department of Justice to provide legal aid
to children.
Mr Nzimande asked how the
pension reform would affect those living on military disability grants.
Mr Jehoma said that in
terms of social assistance the disability grant would automatically convert to
a pension grant when the recipient reached pensionable
age.
The Chairperson said the country faced numerous challenges on social
development, which it was compelled to meet.
The meeting was adjourned.
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