‘Not enough to feed a child’: Report calls for increase to the Child Support Grant

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South Africa’s most important safety net for children - the Child Support Grant - is falling dangerously short. A new Child Gauge Report from UCT’s Children’s Institute warns that the R560-a-month grant leaves millions of children hungry, as it still sits below the food poverty line of R796. While the grant has helped lift millions out of poverty since its launch in 1998, experts say it no longer keeps pace with the cost of living. To truly end child hunger, the report says, the grant must rise. Phemelo speaks to the Human Rights Commission’s Eastern Cape Provincial Manager, Dr Eileen Carter, about the report.
5 Nov 2025 3PM English South Africa Education · Careers

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