South African startup Social Justice has developed a digital platform for the reporting of maintenance obligation – the obligation to provide another person, for example a minor, with housing, food, clothing, education and medical care.
Founded by family mediation practitioners and trainers, Social Justice was launched with the goal of providing fundamental transformation in how legal services are provided to families in South Africa.
It has developed a “Coparent App”, a neutral platform for separated parents with customisable contact schedules, instant messaging with a language filter, secure document storage, a space to share happy moments, and a maintenance obligations tracker.
“The development of the Coparent App and digital maintenance portal aims to disrupt the traditionally conservative legal market. By leveraging legal-tech, we can revolutionise the client experience and provide more efficient, accessible, and effective legal services to families,” said Anneke Greyvenstein, chairman of Social Justice Foundation NPO and CEO of Coparent (the app runs on a hybrid model).
“A critical gap exists within the credit information sharing environment, and although the relevant industry stakeholders are aware of it, to date the digestion of maintenance obligations data has not been addressed.”
The Social Justice Foundation started collecting arrear maintenance in 2006, and within three years assisted more than 10,000 families.
“This experience taught us that we must lobby for legislation changes. In March 2015 the NCR regulations were changed to stipulate that maintenance obligations must form part of the affordability assessment when an applicant applies for further credit,” she said.
At this point the for-profit Social Justice was formed, which has so far trained more than 2,000 attorneys, psychologists and social workers in mediation and alternative dispute resolution.
“We have an established national network of family professionals. In Gauteng, mediators trained by us assist on average 12,000 families per quarter, impacting about 48 000 families annually,” said Greyvenstein.
Coparent is a comprehensive digital platform for maintenance obligation reporting, creating a safe space for stakeholders to share information.
“When a credit provider conducts an inquiry, the maintenance obligations will be included, ensuring that those who owe child support cannot ignore their responsibilities,” said Greyvenstein.
“This platform isn’t just about compliance; it’s about creating an interconnected financial ecosystem. By partnering with Consumer Profile Bureau, one of South Africa’s leading credit bureaus, we’re ensuring that maintenance data is accurate, verifiable, and protected. This will not only improve the financial stability of single-parent families but will also support the socio-economic well-being of their children.”
To date Social Justice has bootstrapped the building of its solution, but recently participated in the UCT Venture Launch programme in order to scale it. The Coparent App was tested with 500 participant families, and will be supported by major stakeholders in the industry, including the National Credit Regulator.
“We will launch in South Africa, but eventually also integrate the solution firstly to Hague Convention Countries,” said Greyvenstein.
“The non-payment of maintenance or child support is a worldwide trend and credit providers must take note of this conundrum in our society.”
