Closing the Gap Between Rich and Poor in South Africa

Abstract

A major concern for South Africa’s new democracy is the huge gap between the living conditions of the poor and the rich. Since 1994 the new government has sought to implement ambitious programmes to redress past discrimination against the poor and address quality of life issues. The paper presents select objective and subjective indicators of living conditions and household satisfaction among rich and poor South Africans as measured by per capita household expenditure. Indicators were compiled from Statistics South Africa’s October Household Surveys of 1995 and 1998, the earliest and latest in the series that include the variable of household satisfaction. The comparative analysis highlights the disparities between rich and poor on both objective living conditions and satisfaction in 1995 and 1998. At the same time, the 1998 indicators already show up instances of improved access to infrastructure for the poor, mainly access to electricity and water and homeownership. Importantly, the poor, including the ultra-poor, appear to respond positively to government intervention and indicate higher levels of satisfaction with improved delivery of services. The paper discusses further prospects for engaging all South Africans in the reduction of poverty and inequality to underpin the stability of the new democracy.