The South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) recently announced that offices will now be open on Saturdays and Sundays through September. On Wednesday, the organization informed GroundUp that this would enable recipients of social grants to exchange their existing SASSA cards for the Post Office’s new yellow SASSA card.

“SASSA has expanded services to weekends on Saturdays and Sundays from 8 am to 1 pm to ensure that services are accessible to all beneficiaries,” stated Shivani Wahab of SASSA Western Cape.

According to an announcement made by SASSA last week, the Post Office will take over beneficiary cash payments when the current contract with Cash Paymaster Services (CPS) expires in September. The Post Office will handle all recipients’ payments and receipts, with the exception of those who have their grants deposited directly into their bank accounts.

In order to educate the public about this issue, The Black Sash and the Right2Know organization have collaborated to organize information sessions in a number of Cape Town neighborhoods.

The majority of elderly grant recipients who attended the May 28 event in Khayelitsha inquired about the Post Office’s role in the grant payment plan and whether the new cards would be deducted.