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Grants of more than R63 million over two years to this institution in Johannesburg are under investigation by the Gauteng Department of Social Development. Photo: Masego Mafata |
The Gauteng Department of Social Development is under investigation for funding non-profit organizations, following allegations of malpractices and questionable practices. Two organizations, The Beauty Hub Academy and Daracorp, were awarded nearly R114 million in grants over the past two years. The investigation has led to several department officials being placed on "precautionary suspension," more individuals have been identified as possibly involved. The probe is into "more than those two" organisations. Still, the department could not divulge further details about its investigation, which started in October and is scheduled to be concluded in March.
The grants to Beauty Hub and Daracorp were made during cuts in budgets for grants to organizations working in HIV, community care, older people, poverty relief, and other critical areas of social support. The grants were allocated R30 million and over R26 million, respectively, for the 2023/24 financial year and R33.7 million and R23.9 million, respectively, in the 2022/23 financial year. The size of the grants caused a furore among other grantees who questioned why two organisations had been allocated so much money to subsidise people they train. In contrast, other organisations funded by the Gauteng department received significantly less support to sponsor trainees. On average, the department's grants are less than an R1-million per organisation annually.
The department has begun addressing areas of concern stemming from oversight bodies. It has created an independent Non-Profit Organisation Evaluation and Adjudication panel to scrutinize, evaluate, and adjudicate applications for funding from the non-profit organisation sector. The panel will also perform independent monitoring and evaluation of funded non-profit organisations periodically during each financial year.
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