The South African Department of Social Development has withdrawn its Green Paper on Comprehensive Social Security and Retirement Reform.
The document proposed to introduce a government-run social security fund that would have allowed people to receive retirement, survivor, disability and/or unemployment benefits.
Contributions would have been based on a person’s income and wealth, with different bands and benefits provided accordingly.
But the department said that, on 18 August 2021, it gazetted the decision to withdraw the green paper to “provide better clarity on some of the matters entailed [in it]”.
It added: “Some of the technical aspects of the proposals were not well understood and many have misrepresented the proposals, particularly on the National Social Security Fund. It has become apparent that some of these areas need further clarification to avoid any further confusion.
“By virtue of this being a discussion paper, the department is pleased by the level of public discourse on this subject matter, as it reinforces the fact that society should be involved in the policy making space.
“The department expects to release the paper as soon as these issues have been addressed.”
