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Poverty and Well-being in Post-Apartheid South Africa: An Overview of Data, Outcomes and Policy

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  • Bhorat, Haroon
  • Kanbur, Ravi

Abstract

This is an overview of poverty and well-being in the first decade of post-apartheid South Africa. It is an introduction to a volume that brings together some of the most prominent academic research done on this topic for the 10-year review process in South Africa. This overview highlights three key aspects of the picture that the detailed research paints. First, data quality and comparability has been a constant issue in arriving at a consensus among analysts on the outcomes for households and individuals in postapartheid South Africa. Second, while the outcomes on unemployment, poverty and inequality are indeed bad, the outcomes on social indicators and access to public services are much more encouraging. Third, the prospects for rapid and sustained economic growth, without which poverty and well-being cannot be addressed in the long run, are themselves negatively affected by increasing inequality, poverty and unemployment.

Suggested Citation

  • Bhorat, Haroon & Kanbur, Ravi, 2006. "Poverty and Well-being in Post-Apartheid South Africa: An Overview of Data, Outcomes and Policy," Working Papers 127035, Cornell University, Department of Applied Economics and Management.
    • Handle: RePEc:ags:cudawp:127035
    DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.127035
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    Cited by:

    1. Phillippe G. Leite & Terry McKinley & Rafael Guerreiro Osorio, 2006. "The Post-Apartheid Evolution of Earnings Inequality in South Africa, 1995-2004," Working Papers 32, International Policy Centre for Inclusive Growth.
    2. Dorrit Posel & Michael Rogan, 2016. "Measured as Poor versus Feeling Poor: Comparing Money-metric and Subjective Poverty Rates in South Africa," Journal of Human Development and Capabilities, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 17(1), pages 55-73, February.
    3. Posel, Dorrit & Rogan, Michael, 2014. "Measured as poor versus feeling poor: Comparing objective and subjective poverty rates in South Africa," WIDER Working Paper Series 133, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    4. Nicola Branson & Martin Wittenberg, 2014. "Reweighting South African National Household Survey Data to Create a Consistent Series Over Time: A Cross-Entropy Estimation Approach," South African Journal of Economics, Economic Society of South Africa, vol. 82(1), pages 19-38, March.
    5. World Bank, 2011. "Accountability in Public Services in South Africa," World Bank Publications - Reports 29723, The World Bank Group.
    6. Sheona Shackleton & Marty Luckert, 2015. "Changing Livelihoods and Landscapes in the Rural Eastern Cape, South Africa: Past Influences and Future Trajectories," Land, MDPI, vol. 4(4), pages 1-30, November.
    7. Dorrit Posel & Michael Rogan, 2014. "Measured as Poor Versus Feeling Poor: Comparing Objective and Subjective Poverty Rates in South Africa," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2014-133, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    8. Molefi Solomon Mohautse, 2014. "The Economic and Political Ramifications of Inequality in Post-Apartheid South Africa," Journal of Economics and Behavioral Studies, AMH International, vol. 6(9), pages 690-699.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Consumer/Household Economics; Institutional and Behavioral Economics; Public Economics;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • A1 - General Economics and Teaching - - General Economics

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