Chairperson, with regard to cash payment contracts, beneficiaries of social grants may choose to cash their grants at private businesses. The SA Social Security Agency, Sassa, is aware that beneficiaries are receiving their grants at private businesses, which have been subcontracted by cash payment contractors in terms of the current payment contracts.
Private businesses cannot impose conditions on the paying out of grants as beneficiaries are entitled to receiving their full grant amount. The outstanding service level agreements signed between Sassa and service providers explicitly state that beneficiaries should be paid the full grant amount they are entitled to. The service level agreements do, however, permit service providers to introduce alternative payment channels that are meant to improve access to social grants by beneficiaries through the provisions of the service level agreement and legislation.
In terms of these alternative payment channels that the service providers enter into with private businesses, there is also a new service level agreement that we have entered into which looks into improving the quality of service we deliver to our people. Maybe we should specify that it's not all the provinces that have contracts with private businesses. This service is rendered throughout the provinces of KwaZulu-Natal and the Northern Cape. In the Western Cape, it is rendered only in rural areas, and in Mpumalanga it is rendered in some parts of the province. Thank you, Chairperson.