Question NW3106 to the Minister of Social Development
13 October 2023 - NW3106
van der Merwe, Ms LL to ask the Minister of Social Development
Whether, with reference to the widespread reports that hundreds of thousands of grant recipients did not receive their payments for September 2023 due to technical glitches with the new payment system at the SA Postbank, all the monies have now been paid out; if not, why not; if so, what (a) measures have been put in place to prevent the nonpayment from happening in October 2023 and (b) are the full relevant details of how the new payment system at Postbank was tested before going live?
Reply:
All September 2023 payments to social grants recipients were made.
a) Postbank has assured the Department that they have implemented the following measures in relation to the October 2023 social grants payments preparations.
- Enhanced monitoring mechanisms to track the payment process in real-time.
- Strengthened their technical infrastructure to handle higher transaction volumes, ensuring swift and uninterrupted disbursements.
- Engaged specialists for a comprehensive review of their system and to continuously rectify any vulnerabilities.
(b) The new payment system was tested in accordance with acceptable industry system testing protocols including Component Integration Testing (CIT), System Integration Testing (SIT) and Industry Testing prior to system go-live.
National Assembly written Reply: 3106 of 2023
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Approved by the Minister of Social Development
Date……………………….