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Poverty in South Africa: A profile based on recent household surveys

Author

Listed:
  • Paula Armstrong

    (Department of Economics, Stellenbosch University)

  • Bongisa Lekezwa

    (Department of Economics, Stellenbosch University)

  • Krige Siebrits

    (Department of Economics, Stellenbosch University)

Abstract

This paper provides a non-technical, snapshot-like profile of poverty in South Africa based on two surveys recently conducted by Statistics South Africa: the Income and expenditure survey of households 2005/06 (IES2005) and the General household survey 2006 (GHS2006). It uses various “poverty markers” (including geographical location, population group, gender, household structure, the age of the head of the household, and employment status) to identify key characteristics of poverty groups, and also highlights other important dimensions of poverty (deficient access to infrastructure services, high transport cost burdens, limited education attainments, and exposure to hunger). The paper further emphasises that the expansion of social grants since 1999 has significantly reduced extreme poverty.

Suggested Citation

  • Paula Armstrong & Bongisa Lekezwa & Krige Siebrits, 2008. "Poverty in South Africa: A profile based on recent household surveys," Working Papers 04/2008, Stellenbosch University, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:sza:wpaper:wpapers52
    as

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    File URL: https://www.ekon.sun.ac.za/wpapers/2008/wp042008/wp-04-2008.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Victoria Hosegood & Anne Case & Cally Ardington, 2009. "Labor Supply Responses to Large Social Transfers: Longitudinal Evidence from South Africa," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 1(1), pages 22-48, January.
    2. repec:pri:cheawb:case_ardington_hosegood_nber_w13442_oct07 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. repec:pri:rpdevs:case_ardington_hosegood_nber_w13442_oct07 is not listed on IDEAS
    4. Ingrid Woolard & Murray Leibbrandt, 1999. "Measuring Poverty in South Africa," Working Papers 99033, University of Cape Town, Development Policy Research Unit.
    5. Murray Leibbrandt & Ingrid Woolard, 1999. "A comparison of poverty in South Africa's nine provinces," Development Southern Africa, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 16(1), pages 37-54.
    6. Servaas van der Berg & Ronelle Burger & Rulof Burger & Megan Louw & Derek Yu, 2005. "Trends in poverty and inequality since the political transition," Working Papers 01/2005, Stellenbosch University, Department of Economics.
    7. World Bank, 2007. "World Development Indicators 2007," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 8150.
    8. Servaas Van Der Berg & Megan Louw & Derek Yu, 2008. "Post‐Transition Poverty Trends Based On An Alternative Data Source1," South African Journal of Economics, Economic Society of South Africa, vol. 76(1), pages 58-76, March.
    9. Servaas van der Berg & Megan Louw, 2003. "Changing Patterns of South African income distribution: Towards time series estimates of distribution and poverty," Working Papers 02/2003, Stellenbosch University, Department of Economics.
    10. Servaas Van Der Berg & Megan Louw, 2004. "Changing Patterns Of South African Income Distribution: Towards Time Series Estimates Of Distribution And Poverty1," South African Journal of Economics, Economic Society of South Africa, vol. 72(3), pages 546-572, September.
    11. Elizabeth Kasekende & John P. Dunne, 2016. "Financial Innovation and Money Demand in Sub-Saharan Africa," Working Papers 59, Economic Research Southern Africa.
    12. Servaas van der Berg, 1997. "South African social security under apartheid and beyond," Development Southern Africa, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 14(4), pages 481-503.
    13. Servaas van der Berg & Megan Louw & Derek Yu, 2007. "Post-transition poverty trends based on an alternative data source," Working Papers 08/2007, Stellenbosch University, Department of Economics.
    14. repec:pri:cheawb:case_ardington_hosegood_nber_w13442_oct07.pdf is not listed on IDEAS
    15. Debbie Budlender, 1999. "Patterns of poverty in South Africa," Development Southern Africa, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 16(2), pages 197-219.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Dorrit Posel & Michael Rogan, 2012. "Gendered trends in poverty in the post-apartheid period, 1997--2006," Development Southern Africa, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 29(1), pages 97-113, March.
    2. Wilkinson, Kate, 2009. "Adapting EUROMOD for use in a developing country – the case of South Africa and SAMOD," EUROMOD Working Papers EM5/09, EUROMOD at the Institute for Social and Economic Research.
    3. Priscilla Gutura, 2014. "Boosting Their Stomachs’: The Role of Social Grants in South Africa," Journal of Economics and Behavioral Studies, AMH International, vol. 6(2), pages 105-119.
    4. Luca Tiberti & Hélène Maisonnave & Margaret Chitiga & Ramos Mabugu & Véronique Robichaud & Stewart Ngandu, 2013. "The Economy-wide Impacts of the South African Child Support Grant: a Micro-Simulation-Computable General Equilibrium Analysis," Cahiers de recherche 1303, CIRPEE.
    5. Rachel Nishimwe-Niyimbanira, 2018. "Multidimensional Poverty among the Villages of the South African Former Homeland of Qwaqwa," International Journal of Economics and Financial Issues, Econjournals, vol. 8(3), pages 241-249.
    6. Rapatsa Mashele, 2016. "‘VIPsm’, A Threat to Social Stability in South Africa: From Apartheid Exclusions to Democratized Inequalities," European Review of Applied Sociology, Sciendo, vol. 9(13), pages 6-14, December.
    7. Maurice Nchabeleng & Olawale Fatoki & Olabanji Oni, 2018. "Owners' Characteristics and the Financial Bootstrapping Strategies Used by Rural Small Businesses in South Africa," Journal of Economics and Behavioral Studies, AMH International, vol. 10(4), pages 277-286.
    8. Nomusa F. Mngoma & Oyedeji A. Ayonrinde, 2023. "Mental distress and substance use among rural Black South African youth who are not in employment, education or training (NEET)," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 69(3), pages 532-542, May.
    9. Nimmi Seoraj-Pillai & Neville Pillay, 2016. "A Meta-Analysis of Human–Wildlife Conflict: South African and Global Perspectives," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(1), pages 1-21, December.
    10. Baiyegunhi, Lloyd James S., 2014. "Social capital effects on rural household poverty in Msinga, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa," Agrekon, Agricultural Economics Association of South Africa (AEASA), vol. 53(2), June.
    11. Judith Streak & Derek Yu & Servaas Van der Berg, 2009. "Measuring Child Poverty in South Africa: Sensitivity to the Choice of Equivalence Scale and an Updated Profile," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 94(2), pages 183-201, November.
    12. Burca Kizilirmak & Emel Memis, 2019. "The Unequal Burden of Income Poverty on Time Use in South Africa," World Journal of Applied Economics, WERI-World Economic Research Institute, vol. 5(2), pages 31-51, December.
    13. repec:ags:ijag24:346768 is not listed on IDEAS
    14. Kaus, Wolfhard, 2013. "Conspicuous consumption and “race”: Evidence from South Africa," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 100(1), pages 63-73.
    15. Johan Fourie, 2016. "The long walk to economic freedom after apartheid, and the road ahead," Working Papers 11/2016, Stellenbosch University, Department of Economics.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Poverty; Poverty markers; Burden of poverty; Social grants; South Africa;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D31 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Personal Income and Wealth Distribution
    • I32 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Measurement and Analysis of Poverty

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