South Africa’s ‘DOGE’ cuts R200 million in social grant spending

Since the implementation of the Targeted and Responsible Savings (TARS) initiative by the National Treasury, over R200 million has been saved in fraudulent or incorrect social grant payments. 

This is a drop in the ocean compared to the National Treasury’s target of R6.7 billion worth of savings identified in underperforming programmes. 

However, it does show that the programme is working, albeit in a limited fashion, with it set to be scaled up to more government departments and agencies in the coming months. 

The TARS programme was first unveiled in the third Budget Speech of 2025 after the VAT hikes were scrapped, with some of the cost savings set to make up for the lost tax revenue.

“TARS will be established to identify and remove low-priority or underperforming programs from the budget to reduce aggregate expenditure,” the Treasury said at the time. 

The programme aims to identify a list of government spending plans that are underperforming or no longer relevant to South Africa’s development. 

Once this list was approved, each plan would be subjected to a full review that may lead to its “de-implementation” in the 2026/27 financial year. 

In effect, these plans would have to prove to the National Treasury that they are delivering value for money or potential efficiency gains to avoid being cut entirely. 

Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana unveiled in the 2026 Budget Speech that the TARS programme has identified R6.7 billion worth of savings. 

These savings primarily come from underperforming programmes that are set to be shut down or scaled back in the current financial year. 

Intense focus has been given to the public transport network grant, which was once seen as critical for the development of transport infrastructure in South Africa. 

This grant is being scaled down as it failed to meet its objective, with Godongwana revealing that some cities have failed entirely to get projects off the ground. 

“An integrated public transport system is essential to support working-class communities. We will be reconsidering how to lower the cost of mobility and rework the institutional framework,” Godongwana said.

Social grant spending cut

Apart from the public transport network grant, the National Treasury has turned its attention to the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA). 

The agency has been plagued by allegations of widespread corruption, mismanagement, and inadequate service delivery. 

It is critical for the functioning of the South African economy, as it is responsible for transferring R292.8 billion worth of social grants in the country. 

This supports tens of millions of livelihoods, bolsters demand for goods and services, and supplements the income of elderly individuals. 

In recent years, widespread fraud has been uncovered at SASSA, with grant recipients double-dipping, not meeting the criteria to receive payments, or hacking the system. 

Two university students found in 2024 that SASSA’s online application had significant loopholes that enabled criminals to siphon off millions of rands meant for the country’s most vulnerable. 

In particular, they showed that criminal syndicates were using the ID numbers of valid South African citizens to apply for and receive grants. 

As a result, the victims have been locked out of the system, as fraudsters were already receiving money in their name from SASSA. 

Responding to questions from Members of Parliament, Godongwana revealed how the TARS programme has identified over R200 million in social grant savings so far. 

Godongwana explained that TARS has only been unleashed on two government programmes so far, the public transport network grants and social grants. 

The work on SASSA is just getting started, with the TARS programme aiming to identify fraudulent recipients and mismanagement. 

Godongwana said that so far, the TARS programme has analysed six million bank accounts and concluded eight million credit bureau client checks .

This has resulted in –

• 291,581 grant beneficiaries flagged for review
• 8,599 disability and old age grant recipients adjusted, saving R36.4 million
• 34,661 grants cancelled, saving R170.7 million

SASSA has since implemented more strenuous verification mechanisms to limit the potential for social grant payments to be defrauded.