During the final ten days of Ramadan, the more fortunate in society are keen to reach out to the needy and destitute. But who are they, and how many, and what is being done during the rest of the year to improve their conditions? Dr. Yusuf Bin Ahmad Bin Abdulrahman Al-Othaimeen, Minister of Social Affairs, told Al-Watan newspaper that the families to which social security assistance has been allocated number some 650,000. They consisted, he said, mainly of elderly citizens, widows, orphans and handicapped individuals. In most cases, family members range between four and six in number, but in other cases a family may consist of a single member. The poor are identified through the 92 social security offices spread around the Kingdom and there are no waiting lists for social security payment. Dr. Al-Othaimeen said that the Ministry of Social Affairs disburses SR1 billion each month in social security payments. The purpose, he said, is not to provide for luxury items but for the necessities of life. “The aim is to spare individuals the humiliation of begging, and not to give them fixed amounts which would encourage them not to work,” he said, adding that it would be inconceivable to place beneficiaries of social security on the same footing as an employee who works from morning to evening. The Minister also explained that the rules of the Ministry of Social Affairs do not prevent beneficiaries from receiving assistance from other agencies or societies, such as Al-Birr Society. In addition to the cash retirement pension, there are further programs for the purchase of school supplies, contributions to electricity bills, furniture and electrical appliances and the provision of interest-free loans. There are impoverished individuals, he noted, who are too proud to ask for help. “We try to simplify our procedures as much as we can to spare these individuals the embarrassment of asking for financial assistance,” the Minister said. Dr. Othaimeen said his Ministry was not responsible for helping non-Saudi beggars but it would assist Saudis caught begging who are unable to find work. Regarding the concern that some people may be obtaining government assistance fraudulently, the Minister said that the social security system operates according to specific criteria. False cases, he said, are sometimes discovered when information is updated. The Ministry was not responsible for helping the able-bodied “We only help those unable to work, either because of age, illness, disability or cases such as widows and abandoned women, or families of prisoners or handicapped individuals,” he said. Al-Othaimeen described poverty as an undeniable global problem, and said efforts should not be expended trying to determine whether it exists or not, but instead on assessing efforts made by the government and organizations to fight it. The problem of poverty should be tackled through an integrated government and private system, and the problem should not be the responsibility of any one body, he said adding that economic reform is essential. The authorities currently directly responsible for combating poverty are the Ministry of Labor, and training and education institutions. The Minister outlined the most important steps that need to be taken: “Improvement in the investment climate and the work environment, simplifying agency procedures for small business loans and, most importantly, putting an end to the steady stream of foreigners working in the country.” Saudis should have employment opportunities, he added, particularly given that 65 percent of the population is of employment age. The source of most social security funds is Zakat, and all Zakat funds received from large companies and establishments are deposited in a special social security account at the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency. __
