The Black Sash and other concerned organisations held the first of three protests on Wednesday as part of their "ten days of activism" to highlight the need for the maximum age of the Child Support Grant to be extended to 18 years.

The Alliance for Children's Entitlement to Social Security (Acess) and the New Women's Movement, together with other civil service and children's activism groups, gathered with the Black Sash on the steps of St Mary's Cathedral in Cape Town.

Although the constitution defines a child as a person under the age of 18, currently the Child Support Grant is only given to those aged 14 and younger.

"What they're doing is suicide. Parliament must see the severity of poverty ... If the state distances itself, the children cannot be taken care of," said Acess media officer Bukelwa Voko on Wednesday.

"The grant is an investment to give a child, and we must invest today if we want to have a viable economy tomorrow," Voko said.

Studies have connected the grant to school attendance, nutritional availability and therefore a child's health, said Ratula Beukman, Black Sash Advocacy Programme Manager.

Acess project officer Sanja Bornman said that children aged 15 to 18 were a vulnerable group.

"They really need to stay in school. But if they cannot afford school fees and uniforms, they drop out. They cannot get jobs because they do not even have a matric, and it continues the cycle," said Bornman.

The Black Sash and Acess are calling on all South Africans to sign the Child Support Grant petition, which 8 000 people, including Archbishop Desmond Tutu, have already endorsed.