When Nancy James, 51, of Chimphutsi Village, Traditional Authority (T/A) Maseya in Chikwawa District, tragically lost her daughter in July 2022, she faced the overwhelming responsibility of raising two more grandchildren.
She is among the heads of about 293 000 families that depend on the Social Cash Transfer Programme designed to sustain their dietary, educational and other basic needs.
The granny needed additional funds to support her expanded family, however months passed before the two grandchildren were added to her beneficiary form.
Despite the pressing need to add the grandchildren to her case management form, weeks turned into months without any progress.
This stretched her limited income, forcing the elderly woman to supplement it through low-paying piecework and farming activities.
Fortunately, help came late in 2023 when she sought the help of Nkudzi Cluster Grievance Redress Mechanism (GRM) committee, which followed up with the district’s social welfare office to include the new dependents on her form.
The updated form guaranteed her increased monthly social cash transfers.
Nancy’s story is an example of the struggles many people under social protection programmes have been facing to convey their grievances.
But GRM committees l i ke that of Nkudzi Cluster are proving effective in addressing this challenge and enhancing accountability in social protection initiatives such as the cash transfer and the Climate-Smart Enhanced Public Works Programme.
Nkudzi committee chairperson Wellington Mentao says they serve as a vital link between the communities and duty-bearers and ensure all reported cases are resolved.
“Typical cases we manage include challenges in updating new dependent information on the case management forms, discrepancies in benefit allocations within families, and the widespread concer n s reg a r d ing inadequate cash transfers as the beneficiaries feel the amounts are insufficient to meet their basic needs,” he says.
Dalitso Kalimba, deputy director for social protection in the Department of Economic Planning and Development, says government established the griviance-handling committees at different levels in target villages and districts.
“The current harmonised GRM i s addres s ing the fragmentation of structures, streamlining processes and ensuring the anonymity of complainants where necessary,” he says.
Chikwawa district social welfare officer Dumisani Maona says the committees have empowered project participants who once felt powerless to freely voice their concerns.
T h e c o m m i t t e e s comprise stakeholders from different sectors, including government departments, local leaders, community representatives and independent observers to ensure transparency, accountability and fairness in the grievance redress process.
Maona states: “If grievances are not resolved satisfactorily, it reflects poorly on the responsible government agency, which pushes them to improve their processes and responsiveness.
“Grievances raised t h r o u g h t h e GRM committees also provide valuable feedback on the shortcomings in social protection programmes. Thi s feedback loop allows policymakers and administrators to identify areas for improvement and make necessary adjustments to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of the initiatives.”
By addressing grievances promptly and fairly, Maona says the GRM committees also reduce opportunities for malfeasance, corruption and mismanagement of social cash transfer resources.
Where beneficiaries may fear retaliation or reprisals for lodging grievances through the committees against persons involved in the social protection programmes, community members can complain through a toll-free number 351, which is managed by a national call centre.
The United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef), with support from the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, supports the digitisation of the Harmonised GRM through the call centre and GRM Management Information Systems.
Unicef social policy officer Tapiwa Zimba says the success and credibility of social protection initiatives like the social cash transfer programme rely on their ability to respond to grievances, both claims and complaints, to ensure the targeted families, such as Nancy’s hous ehol d , r e c e i v e livelihood support, build resilience against shocks and get out of extreme poverty.
