Because of its interest in answering three recurring questions about the payment of social transfer grants, CGAP commissioned a study of four countries which have large, well-established social welfare programs. Their purpose was to develop information that coincidentally addressed the three primary constituencies involved in these payments: payment service providers, governments, and beneficiaries.
This report covers the South Africa study in which interviews were conducted and information gathered from three government agencies, two banks, and 10 focus groups of clients. Those three government agencies are the Treasury (Ministry of Finance), which authorizes and supplies the funds; the Department for Social Development (DSD), which has overall authority for the social welfare system in South Africa; and the South Africa Social Service Administration (SASSA), which is overseen by DSD and is charged with implementing transfer payments.