By Mish Molakeng
Long queues outside the South African Post Office (SAPO) pay points will soon be a thing of the past with the help of an electronic voucher system.
The Postbank and Post Office have jointly developed an electronic voucher payment system for recipients of the SASSA monthly grants and the COVID-19 Special Relief of Distress grant, which amounts to R350.
The electronic voucher system will enable grant recipients to cash their vouchers at retail outlets.
Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies, Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams, has emphasised the importance of expediting the digitisation of the banking service to alleviate long queues outside pay points. This after she visited a local post office in Mbizana, Eastern Cape, last week and witnessed grant recipients queuing at dawn to receive their special grant payment.
Last week, Cabinet announced the appointment of non-executive directors of the Postbank and Post Office respectively.
Ndabeni-Abrahams said these appointments come at time when stability is urgently needed within these institutions.
The mandate of these institutions is critical, in line with government’s basic services and infrastructure development objectives.
The Postbank is required to establish a presence with unbanked and under-banked communities to advance financial inclusion. At its core mandate, the Postbank is positioned to be a critical stakeholder in furthering financial inclusion of the financially marginalised.
The South Africa Post Office is tasked with promoting economic growth though the provision of postal, logistics and retail products and services that are competitively priced. – SAnews.gov.za
