South Africa’s government of national unity (GNU) was formed because the 2024 general election didn’t yield a majority for any political party. For the first time since 1994, parliament hosts a multiparty government representing the voters’ choices, but with no party holding enough seats to govern alone.

Given that the GNU includes parties with very different political agendas, how does this affect current law and policies? Have any of them changed? Has the GNU made any proposal to change policies?

Many South Africans are worried that our social welfare system – which has been in place to provide social grants for those in need for 20 years – will be changed or removed. Is this possible?

Government laws and policies

The most important point to make is this:

• If you or anyone in your family receives a social welfare grant, this will not change under the GNU.
  
  As one of the conditions for creating the coalition government, all the parties making up the GNU agreed that, if they wish to change any current laws or policies, they must go through a canvassing process and government must make a majority decision about any proposed changes.
  
  Making new laws and policies is a complex process involving many stages, during which parties debate and negotiate key issues, then decide on official government policy or pass the appropriate law. It can take a few years to implement a proposed policy or pass a law, before you’ll feel the impact of these changes.

Differences between policy and law

A policy outlines what a government ministry hopes to achieve and the methods and principles it will use to achieve them. It is not a law that you must obey, but it will often identify where a new law is needed to achieve its goals.

Simply put, laws set out standards, procedures and principles that must be followed. If you break the law, you can be prosecuted in court. Current government policy guides lawmaking.

There are several different stages to policy and lawmaking:

• The governing party sets vision and policy goals
  From 1994 to 2024, this was the ANC, but the GNU now sets policy based on consensus among the different parties in government. However, we’re now facing some uncertainty. In the 2025 Budget Vote, the ANC tried to ignore the opposition of its largest GNU partner, the DA, and turned to other parties in Parliament (outside the GNU) to force through an increase in the VAT rate – a move which eventually failed. Going forward, however, this could have implications for consensus-based policymaking.
  
  
• The executive draws up policy
  Government ministers draw up policies, and the laws to support these policies, and put them into the public sphere for debate, input and amendment. This stage can take some years, and the discussion documents are called White Papers or Green Papers, depending on how close they are to passing into law. White papers are policy statements that come before parliament to be passed into law and usually form the basis of the law itself.
  
  
• Passing a law
  The policy statement is then converted into a draft bill, which goes through additional public and government vetting and input before it is approved and passed. This is also a long, difficult process, and a draft bill must be approved by both national and provincial government before it can be signed into law by the president.

Social welfare

Given the complexity of government processes, major changes in laws or policy need widespread political support. The statement of intent signed by all parties in the GNU stipulates that no single party may introduce new policies or legislation – it must first canvass a clear majority of support for such a policy.

Many in government see our system of social welfare grants – paid to South African citizens, permanent residents and refugees in need of assistance – as non-negotiable. Government administers more than 18 million social grants a month through the South African Social Security Agency, created in 2004 to support vulnerable people living in poverty.

Grants are made in several categories:

• Child support
• Care dependency
• Foster child
• Disability
• Older persons
• War veterans
• Social relief of distress

Our social welfare system is in line with the Constitution and the right to socioeconomic security guaranteed in the Bill of Rights. It offers financial support to people who cannot provide for themselves. For a developing country, South Africa has a well-established social welfare system, and a large proportion of social spending goes towards social grants.

Government policy on social welfare grants

There are no current discussions in government about any changes to social welfare. The GNU appears to regard this set of policies as ‘business as usual’, and the policies in place for social welfare remain unchanged.

Applicants for social grants must be South African citizens, permanent residents or refugees, and currently living in South Africa. Grants are means tested – which means the Department of Social Development will assess the value of your assets and income to decide if you are below the threshold to qualify for a grant.

Your existing grant may lapse, or you might become ineligible for social welfare, for any of the following reasons:

• You’re admitted to a state institution.
• A period of temporary disability has lapsed.
• You are absent from SA for longer than 90 days.
• You cease to be a refugee.
• You’ve been receiving a child support grant, and the child turns 18.

If you, or someone you know, is a welfare grant recipient, consider opening a Nedbank MiGoals Account. You’ll get your grant money on time, and you’ll avoid the security risk of carrying cash. You’ll spend less on bank charges and transport to grant payout points, and you’ll also get access to all the digital banking services you need on the Money app.

You can apply for a MiGoals Account online, at any Nedbank branch, or at one of our kiosks in Boxer stores.