Government social protection and households’ welfare during the Covid-19 pandemic in South Africa

Abstract

PurposeThis study evaluates the impact of government social protection interventions on households’ welfare in South Africa.Design/methodology/approachThe study uses survey data comprising 393 observations and the multinomial logistic regression technique to analyse the effect of government interventions on households’ welfare. For robustness purposes, a negative binomial regression model is also estimated whose results corroborate the main results from the multinomial regression model.FindingsThe study’s findings show that government economic interventions through social protection significantly reduce the likelihood of a decrease in household income or consumption. COVID-19 grant/social relief of distress grant, unemployment insurance, tax relief and job protection and creation are all significant in sustaining household income and consumption.Practical implicationsThe findings have policy implications for social development. Specifically, the findings support the use of government social protection as a safety net for low-income groups in South Africa.Originality/valueThe study presents preliminary evidence on the effectiveness of several measures used to ameliorate the COVID-19-induced recession within the South African context.

South African social policy after Covid-19: New policy imperatives?

“…It is important to note that during the initial months of the Covid-19 pandemic, the government quickly implemented social policy measures to alleviate the suffering of the citizens. Evidently, the pandemic had brought economic hardships for South African households, with vulnerable people living in rural, peri-urban and informal settlements being at higher risk than others (Zhou et al, 2023). This situation stemmed from a constrained economic environment which was typified by the closure of firms and especially small businesses, and workers losing their jobs, among others, due to the national lockdown.…”

Interruptions, interventions, and innovations in social services during COVID‐19 in Bangladesh

“…Social protection schemes offered by the government have been recognized as an important tool in fighting COVID-19 (Abdoul-Azize & El Gamil, 2021;Zhou et al, 2023). Gerard et al (2020) claimed that the authorities had to introduce a safety net program in an emergency manner to cover a wide range of people in order to deal with the rapid spread of COVID-19.…”

“…Social protection schemes offered by the government have been recognized as an important tool in fighting COVID‐19 (Abdoul‐Azize & El Gamil, 2021; Zhou et al., 2023). Gerard et al.…”