The Child Support Grant in South Africa: a social policy for poverty alleviation?

The article analyses the Child Support Grant (CSG) in South Africa as a measure of poverty alleviation. Introduced in 1998 amid a great deal of controversy and fanfare, the CSG was a means-tested cash benefit for poor children between the ages of 0 and 6 years, most of whom were located in the poorest of South Africa's nine provinces, i.e. the Eastern Cape, Kwazulu-Natal and Limpopo (formerly known as the Northern Province). South Africa's unique history is discussed to show how the CSG became an important poverty alleviation measure. Debates surrounding the introduction of the CSG are discussed, not least its reliance on effective inter-sectoral collaboration, research and the provision of developmental welfare programmes.