SOUTH AFRICA: A Poverty Profile
National Welfare Social Service and Development Forum
by Niresh Ramklass

Presentation made at –
the ICSW Civil Society Forum on Poverty
February 18, 1999, New York

      "Fifty years after the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, one third of the developing world’s people are enslaved by a poverty so complete that it denies them fundamental human rights. The scale of the poverty at the end of the twentieth century is an affront to human dignity. Nearly 12 million children die each year before their fifth birthday. More than 800 million go hungry. This is not a fitting legacy for the next generation.”

     With these words of James Gustave Speth of the UNDP, I wish to greet you on behalf of all South Africans. The immense scale of global poverty today is reminiscent of past global tragedies such as the Great Depression of the 1930s. Billions of people are living in desperate poverty, lack access to safe drinking water, are unemployed or underemployed, or are illiterate. All this on the verge of the 21st century.

The Situation of Poverty in South Africa

     I am sure you need not be reminded of the horrible legacy of apartheid in South Africa, and of the suffering of millions of Black people in that country. Nor do I have to remind you of the colossal oppression that destroyed thousands of lives and resembled Nazi style characteristics of torture and death.

     This has been the cauldron from which South Africa is only now emerging. There must be very few who remain unscathed from such a terrible past which the United Nations has described as a “Crime against humanity.” And that it certainly was; with the crime being deliberate and calculated, with the aim of ensuring slave-like conditions for the majority of South Africans who were, not surprisingly, Black people. Forgive me if I am rambling on about past evils, but the present situation of poverty in South Africa is the result of plans and policies made in the past. Thus, I feel that there cannot be an effective solution and resolution to this predicament unless that past is truthfully contexualised and acknowledged by all, in any discussion concerning South Africa.

     During 1998 there was a flurry of activity around poverty related work in South Africa:

• A National Conference on Follow-up to the World Summit for Social Development;
  
  
• Public Hearings on Poverty which were held in all provinces;
  
  
• A National Conference on Poverty and Inequality, during which a Report on Poverty and Inequality (P.I.R.) commissioned by the South African government was released; and
  
  
• The Job Summit.

     The above activities provided focus to the plethora of activities carried out by thousands of NGOs and CBOs, (community based organisations) as well as by many government departments. The P.I.R. describes South Africa as an upper middle-income country, where most households experience outright poverty or continuing vulnerability to being poor.
In terms of this report, the following are some of the harsh realities about the state of poverty in South Africa.

1. The Extent & Distribution of Poverty in South Africa

     Despite the relative wealth that South Africa is deemed to possess, the distribution of income and wealth is among the most unequal globally. Many households have unsatisfactory access to education, health care, energy and clean water.

     This situation is likely to affect not only the country’s social and political stability, but also the development path it follows: countries with less equal distributions of income and wealth tend not to grow as rapidly as those countries with more equitable distributions.

      Poverty is defined in the Report as “the inability to attain a minimal standard of living, measured in terms of basic consumption needs or the income required to satisfy them.” Thus, 19 million people (nearly 50% of the total population of South Africa) fall below the “poverty line”.

     The majority of the people quoted above reside in rural areas. 72% of the population is classified as poor and living in rural areas. The Poverty Rate (which is the proportion of people in a particular group or area falling below the Poverty Line) for rural areas is 71%. The Poverty Gap (which is the annual differential to erase the Poverty Line) was about Rand28 billion in 1995, and the rural areas accounted for 76% of this.

     Poverty was found to be distributed unevenly among 9 provinces:

– Eastern Cape (71%)
– Free State (63%)
– North West Province (62%)
– Northern Province (59%)
– Mpumalanga (57%)
– Gauteng (17%)
– Western Cape (28%)

     As seen above, poverty is deepest in the Eastern Cape, Free State and Northern Province, which together make up 36% of the total population of South Africa, but account for 51% of the total Poverty Gap.
Poverty is not confined to any one race group but is concentrated among Blacks (61%); Coloured (38%); Indians (5%); and Whites (1%). The following statistics are alarming and have motivated the certain success of programmes and initiatives to address this dire situation:

1. Three children in five live in poor households.

2. Many of these children are exposed to public and domestic violence, malnutrition and inconsistent parenting and schooling.

3. The poverty rate among female-headed households is 60% in comparison with 31% for male-headed households.

2. Poverty and Human Development

      There is a strong correlation between level of education and standards of living: the poverty rate among people with no education is 69%, compared to 54% among people with primary education, 24% among those with secondary education and 3% among those with tertiary education. There is a correlation between poverty and ill health, with poor children found to suffer much higher than average rate of stunting.

     Poverty and unemployment are closely correlated: 55% of people from poor households are unemployed, compared with 14% of those from non-poor households.

     The government and civil society in South Africa began pursuing the implementation of the Copenhagen Summit commitments in 1995. However, these efforts lacked proper co-ordination, commonality of purpose, sharing of information and skills, and prioritising of activities given the constraints of limited resources and time.

     The Copenhagen Agreements emphasised the need for governments to involve community organisations in developing, implementing and monitoring lasting solutions to the poverty crisis facing the world’s people. Thus an Interim Committee on the World Summit for Social Development was formed and driven by the National Welfare, Social Service and Development Forum in September 1997. This Committee was comprised of representatives from government, civil society, donor agencies and other relevant stakeholders. This Interim Committee, supported by the International Council on Social Welfare, undertook the following:

a. consultation with stakeholders involved in social development initiatives;

b. compiled and presented a report at the ICSW Regional Seminar in Copenhagen; and

c. convened a National Conference on Summit Follow-up Activities in South Africa.

Conference Report on Summit Follow-up

a. Eradicate absolute poverty by a target date to be set by us.

b. To support full employment as a basic policy goal.

c. Promote social integration based on the enhancement and protection of all human rights.

d. Achieve equality between men and women.

e. Accelerate the development of Africa and less developed countries.

f. Ensure that the structural adjustment programmes include social development goals.

g. Increase resources allocated to social development.

h. Create an economic, political, social, cultural and legal environment that will enable people to achieve social development.

i. Attain universal and equitable access to education and primary health care.

j. Strengthen co-operation for social development through the United Nations.

     A National Social Development Strategy, based on the above objectives, was developed and accepted during this conference by delegates representing all stakeholders including government, civil society, private sector, trade unions etc. The Interim Committee was also consolidated as the South African Committee for Social Development.

     The national strategy focuses on the 10 commitments of the World Summit for Social Development, with priority given to poverty alleviation and eradication. This strategy includes:

1. Information dissemination and promotion of the initiatives taken towards poverty alleviation and eradication.

2. The establishment of Task Teams focusing on the development, consolidation, co-ordination and monitoring of programmes and initiatives taken nationally, provincially and locally in respect of the following identified priority areas to achieve our goals:
a. poverty alleviation and eradication
b. job creation
c. gender equality
d. economic empowerment
e. reforming and realigning education programmes
f. human resource development
g. intersectoral collaboration

3. advocacy towards an equitable, empowering legal framework within which programmes and projects may be developed and run effectively and efficiently.

4. co-ordination and information sharing at a national level in order to further streamline the utilization of resources and time.

5. research and development towards appropriate programmes for specific needs.

    This framework will be used to engage stakeholders and communities in the follow-up activities of the World Summit for Social Development.

Conclusion

     As our country moves towards its second democratic election and gears itself to meet the challenges of the 21st Century, it is imperative that we as a nation do not lose sight of the bleak, devastating reality of the poverty faced by the majority of the electorate. The South African Committee for Social Development is committed to and has successfully ensured that all stakeholders representing the majority of South Africans are instrumental in the development and implementation of the strategy to achieve the eradication of absolute poverty in South Africa.

     When we look at the vast natural resources that we have in South Africa, it is with dismay and disgust at times, that we acknowledge that the
bulk of these are controlled and owned by a tiny minority within South Africa. This injustice and imbalance within the economy is priority being addressed by various programmes spearheaded by government but complemented by NGOs.

     Deputy President Thabo Mbeki has stressed the need for the African Renaissance to emerge at the forefront of the liberation of Africa from corrupt administration, poverty, human rights abuses and innumerable crimes. It is only by affording the African nation its rightful dignity and heritage that we may build a continent based on strength, courage, morality and sharing.

     Today, the Western world dominates our path to “freedom of poverty and suffering.” South Africa is committed to joining forces with: the Government via its Growth, Employment and Redistribution Strategy; civil society via national representative structures including trade unions and the private sector via Chambers of Commerce and donor agencies to implement the Action Plan on the Eradication of Absolute Poverty in South Africa and substantially influence this across the Continent.

Niresh Ramklass is the Executive Director
of the National Welfare Social Service and Development Forum (NWSSDF). He has worked in the social services sector for 10 years and is also Chairperson of the South African Committee for Social Development.