The significant decline in poverty in its many dimensions since 1993

The measurement of poverty should include dimensions of well-being that cannot be measured in monetary terms. Data on health, education and standards of living can be used to calculate a so-called Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI). Results suggest that both the prevalence and the intensity of multidimensional poverty fell significantly from 1993 to 2010. The decline in multidimensional poverty is much greater than the decline in poverty as measured in terms of income and/or expenditure. Better social services and infrastructure have played a large role

Poverty and socio-political transition : perceptions in four racially demarcated residential sites in Gauteng

In the period preceding the May 2011 municipal elections there was speculation in the South African media about how widespread dissatisfaction with economic insecurity and poor service delivery would affect voting behaviour. The popular protests that occur intermittently are symptoms of a deep structural malady: the prevalence of chronic poverty in the context of a widening gap between South Africa’s rich and poor. State officials keep pointing to the cushioning effects of social grants and poverty alleviation initiatives, but critics argue that poor state performance and failure to include communities in political process are holding back socioeconomic development. This article discusses recent research on economic hardship and the ‘politics of the poor’ in four residential sites in the vicinity of Pretoria. The data reveal grassroots perceptions of poverty and vulnerability and the coalescing and contradictory political discourses across racial divides.The Andrew Mellon Foundation for a large-scale survey and a National Research Foundation.http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/cdsa20gv201

Investigating household energy poverty in South Africa by using unidimensional and multidimensional measures

The ability to access affordable, reliable and modern energy services presents a pathway to social and economic development. Yet, the lack of access to modern energy services is widespread in sub-Saharan Africa and developing Asia. Following the declaration to achieve universal access to energy by 2030 in the United Nation’s Millennium Development Goals and Sustainable Development Goals – several tools have emerged tracking and monitoring energy access and energy poverty. Earlier efforts have focused on measuring energy poverty from a unidimensional perspective while recent efforts have focused on a multidimensional measurement. However, the growing trend in tracking and monitoring energy poverty using multidimensional indicators has been applied limitedly in the context of South Africa. Part of this has been associated with the lack of detailed and reliable survey data. With access to detailed survey data, this study aimed to evaluate household energy poverty in South Africa by using both unidimensional and multidimensional measures. This study constructed the energy budget share, also known as Tenth-Percentile Rule (TPR) (unidimensional) and the multidimensional energy poverty index (MEPI) using data from wave 1 (2008) and wave 4 (2014-2015) of the National Income Dynamic Study (NIDS) of South Africa. A 10 percent threshold was used for the energy-budget share while a 0.3 cutoff point was used for the MEPI. This study first computed national-level estimates of household energy poverty, and subsequently decomposed these estimates by province, household income poverty status and household location (urban versus rural). A sensitivity analysis was performed to test for the stability in ranking of provinces when the energy poverty threshold of the TPR was varied from 7 to 13 percent, and the energy poverty cutoff k of the MEPI was changed from 0.2 to 0.4. The Spearman rank correlation coefficient was determined for each pair of ranking of provinces to establish the strength of correlation. Based on the TPR measure, results show that 21 and 13 percent of South African households lived in energy poverty in 2008 and 2014-2015, respectively. The MEPI measure indicates that 37 and 19 percent of the households lived in energy poverty in 2008 and 2014- 2015, respectively. Limpopo province had the highest rates of energy poverty in 2014-2015 with values of 25 percent (using TPR) and 52 percent (using MEPI). This study also found that by 2014-2015, only 23 percent (using the TPR) and 46 percent (using the MEPI) of energy poor households lived below the food poverty line of R430. Further, this study found that household energy poverty has reduced in rural areas and by 2014-2015, only 18 percent (using TPR) and 49 percent (using MEPI) of households located in rural areas lived in energy poverty. The lowest observed value of the Spearman rank correlation coefficient was 0.90. It is concluded that the overall household energy poverty has reduced in South Africa between 2008 and 2014-2015. The TPR gives lower estimates of energy poverty than the corresponding values obtained from the MEPI measure. There is negligible effect of varying the threshold values (within the studied range) of the TPR and k

Migration patterns and migrant characteristics in the Western Cape through a differential urbanisation lens

Thesis (MPhil) -- Stellenbosch University, 2014.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This research examines contemporary in-migration patterns and trends to the Western Cape over the period 2001 to 2011. It applies the concepts of main stream and sub-stream migration from the theory of Differential Urbanization to analyse potential characteristics and patterns hidden by aggregated migration data through the use of spatial data and clustering analysis. The research found that there were 312 013 in-migrants to the Western Cape from other provinces between 2001 and 2011, of which 162 380 originated from the Eastern Cape. Mainstream in-migrants were mostly unmarried and of youthful age (mostly 25 to 29 years of age), with low income, moderately skilled, many of them unemployed or not economically active and 31.3% living in informal dwellings in backyards or informal settlements. A second sub-stream of migrants consisted of affluent, highly skilled, married, and older migrants from other metropolitan municipalities, especially from Gauteng. Strong migration patterns were found to exist between the municipalities in the Eastern Cape and the City of Cape Town region and coastal intermediate-sized municipalities in the Western Cape. Productionism was the dominant motivating factor of mainstream migration as migrants continued to migrate to the primate city of Cape Town. Environmentalism as a factor in migration decision making is evident in the sub-stream of migrants aged older than 50 years who favoured coastal municipalities of Overstrand, Mossel Bay, Knysna and Bitou in the Western Cape.AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie navorsing het ten doel om die huidige in-migrasie patrone en tendense in die Wes-Kaap oor die tydperk 2001 tot 2011 te ondersoek. Die konsep van hoofstroom migrasie en sub-stroom migrasie word toegepas om potensiële verskuilde veranderings in die saamgestelde migrasie data te ontleed deur die gebruik van ruimtelike data en groepering analises. Die navorsing het bevind dat daar 312 013 in-immigrante na die Wes-Kaap uit ander provinsies tussen 2001 en 2011 was, waarvan 162 380 uit die Oos-Kaap gekom het. Hoofstroom in-immigrante was meestal ongetroudes en van die jeugdige ouderdomsgroep (meestal 25-29 jaar oud), met lae inkomste, matig geskoold, baie van hulle werkloos of nie ekonomies aktief nie en 31.3% wat in informele wonings in agterplase en informele nedersettings bly. 'n Tweede belangrike sub-stroom van in-migrante bestaan uit ouer, gegoede-, hoogsgeskoolde-, getroude in-immigrante vanuit ander metropolitaanse munisipaliteite, veral Gauteng. Sterk migrasie patrone bestaan tussen die munisipaliteite in die Oos-Kaap en die Stad Kaapstad-streek en die munisipaliteite met intermediêre-grootte stede aan die kus van die Wes-Kaap. Ekonomiese faktore was die dominante motiverende faktor van die hoofstroom migrasie na die primaatstad van Kaapstad. Omgewings- en leefstyl faktore is die onderliggende motiverende faktor van die sub-stroom van in-migrante ouer as 50 jaar na die kus-munisipaliteite van Overstrand, Mosselbaai, Knysna en Bitou in die Wes-Kaap.Master

GIGA Annual Report 2016

The GIGA stands for a global approach to scholarship. We conduct research here that is global in content, global in reach, and global in structure. In 2016, we continued to develop and refine this unique approach. We also fulfilled our goal of publishing our research results in the top-ranked academic outlets. Simultaneously we have been intensifying and diversifying university cooperation here in Germany, finding the right partners for joint appointments, for teaching programmes, and for the training of junior researchers. The Institute uses its research as the basis of its advice to policymakers. Our cooperation with the Federal Foreign Office intensified at all levels last year. A particular highlight was the visit of the then Federal Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier as a speaker at the GIGA Distinguished Speaker Lecture Series. We are also proud to work closely with the government and people of Hamburg to enhance the academic reputation of this city. To improve the accessibility of our scholarship we reformed the GIGA Focus series that provides brief analyses on important regional and global issues. Our publications, and events that draw international participation of top scholars from top institutions, have allowed us to engage with diverse audiences and constituencies, and contribute to a further enrichment of German academic and public debate. This Annual Report presents some of the highlights of our work last year

Middle-income groups in Kenya: Conflicting realities between upward mobility and uncertainty

For more than a decade scholars mostly from economy and development studies have described the rise of a newly emerging ‘middle class’ in the Global South including Africa. This has led to a ‘middle class narrative’ with the ‘middle class’ as the backbone of economic and democratic development. Especially with regard to the stability of the position of the people in the ‘middle’, empirical social science studies challenge the ‘middle class narrative’ and at their uncertainty and insecurity. This tension between upward mobility at the one hand uncertainty and instability at the other hand (the vulnerability-security nexus) and the options to cope with this challenge under the condition of limited provision of formal social security is the focus of this case study on Kenya. Instead of an analysis of inequality based on income, it is more helpful to start from the welfare mix and the role of social networks as main elements of provision of social security. Against this background, we identify different strategies of coping that go together with different sets of values and lifestyles, conceptualised as milieus, that are not determined by the socio-economic situation

Power, politics, and performance: community participation in South African public works programs

"...Through a study of seven public works programs implemented in Western Cape province, this report examines the benefits and challenges of pursuing community participation, together with the effects of participation on meeting the other objectives of the programs. Although aspects of South Africa's experience are unique to its political economy, the study's findings reveal insights, dilemmas, and possibilities of considerable relevance in the wider context of participatory or “community-driven” development programs, which have increasingly become integral to the development agenda throughout the world.and were not trained...Politics, conflicts of interest, struggles over resources, and processes of consultation and consensus-building are part of the landscape of community-driven development. If participatory development is to remain on South Africa's development agenda, all actors must commit to realizing this objective, including generating sufficient resources, creativity, and patience to see the process through." from Authors' SummaryPublic works South Africa, Community development South Africa, Community participation South Africa, Development programs Evaluation, Civil society, Government policy,

Developments in the South African credit market and analysis on indebted consumers using NIDS data

Household debt measures provide vital information regarding society's financial wellbeing. This paper uses a comparative static analysis approach to evaluate total and consumer debt at the household level using two waves of NIDS data relating to the periods 2008 and 2012. The descriptive analysis is based on the share of income servicing debt by various household characteristics while the econometric analysis models the determinants of debt servicing at the household level. The descriptive statistics illustrates the financial vulnerable position of low income households as they spend a proportionally larger share of household income on debt payments and their main sources of credit are from retailers, hire purchase agreements and loan sharks. The OLS and Median Quantile regression results for 2008 and 2012 under total debt analysis indicate a dampening of the negative effect for female, Black, Coloured, no schooling and primary schooling variables; a strengthening of the positive effect for formal house structure made of brick; a dampening of the positive effect for house ownership, post-secondary education, employment and urban variables; and a strengthening of the negative effect associated with government grant income. Results for consumer debt servicing for the same period suggests a narrowing of the gender gap; that lower levels of education are less of a barrier; and that the positive effect associated with urban settlement type has diminished

The impact of remittances on the educational attainment of black South Africans

Thesis (MPhil Development Finance)--Stellenbosch University, 2015.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This assignment studies the impact of remittance receipts on the educational attainment of Black South African children. Using the second wave of the National Income Dynamic Study and applying the instrumental variable econometric approach, the determinants of the following outcomes are studied: children aged zero to six years enrolling in early childhood development facilities, and the highest grade completed by children aged 14 to 25 years. Contrary to the theory and related literature, we find that the receipt of remittances does not have a statistically significant impact on the probability of young children being enrolled in early childhood development facilities, nor does it have a statistically significant effect on the probability of children achieving any levels of primary, secondary and tertiary educational attainment. Another finding that was inconsistent with the theory is that parental education and wealth do not have a significant effect on the probability of zero to six year olds being enrolled in early childhood development facilities, although early childhood development programs are funded privately in South Africa. The findings have also shown that the factor of people residing on farms and in areas under tribal authority has mixed effects on the educational attainment of children. Children aged zero to six residing on farms and in areas under tribal authority have significantly lower probabilities of being enrolled in early childhood development facilities. On the other hand, older children (22 to 25 year olds) residing on farms and in areas under tribal authority have higher probabilities of completing secondary schooling and obtaining tertiary qualifications than their urban counterparts.AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Geen opsomming beskikbaa