South Africa's Social Policy Response to Covid-19
Author | : Ndangwa Noyoo |
Publisher | : |
Total Pages | : |
Release | : 2021 |
Genre | : |
ISBN | : |
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This report discusses South Africa's initial social policy response to the Covid-19 pandemic. It provides a timeline of the early stages of the pandemic and of the government's legislative interventions. South Africa's social policy response was premised on the country's post-apartheid development agenda, which is significantly informed by the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP). In response to the pandemic, South Africa's government rolled out a social relief and economic support package worth approximately 10% of GDP. This package funded, for instance, a special Covid-19 “Social Relief of Distress Grant” for all those individuals who were unemployed and did not receive any other form of social assistance. South Africa could roll out such a massive social relief and economic support package because the necessary institutional infrastructure was already in place. The report concludes with some reflections on the broader social implications of the pandemic.