Child Poverty in South Africa

1
Child Poverty in South Africa

• Phakama Ntshongwana
• Helen Barnes
• Michael Noble
• Gemma Wright

2
South African governments commitments to tackle
child poverty

• Ratified Convention on the Rights of the Child
  and African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of
  the Child and present at World Summit for
  Children, Millennium Summit and UN Special
  Session on Children
• National Programme of Action for Children and
  Office on the Rights of the Child
• South African Constitution (Article 28) - every
  child has the right, amongst others, to family
  care or parental care, or to appropriate
  alternative care when removed from the family
  environment to basic nutrition, shelter, basic
  health care services and social services and to
  be protected from maltreatment, neglect, abuse,
  or degradation
• Childrens Act 38 of 2005 to give effect to the
  Constitutional rights
• Social assistance child support grant, foster
  child grant and care dependency grant
• New commitments by Department of Social
  Development (DSD) to tackle child poverty calls
  by Skweyiya, Minister of Social Development for
• a renewal of our pledge to a national
  partnership to fight child poverty, social
  exclusion and to promote social cohesion and
  improve service delivery despite
  Governments commitment to the long-term
  objective of transforming the country in a
  non-racial, non-sexist, democratic nation,
  children remain on the periphery of social
  transformation. Children continue to be hard hit
  by poverty in various parts of the country.

3
Estimates of child poverty in South Africa

• Previous research into child poverty in South
  Africa has often used a resources (income or
  expenditure) approach. Some examples

4
Multidimensional child poverty research in South
Africa

• Haarmann (1999) composite index of 9 indicators
  in 4 categories (expenditure, housing, health,
  employment opportunities)
• Cassiem et al. (2000) indicators based on
  survival rights, development rights, protection
  rights and participation rights
• Childrens Institute Children Count/Abantwana
  Babalulekile (2005 onwards) indicators to
  monitor situation of children in South Africa
  (demography, social security, housing, nutrition,
  health, water and sanitation, education) and the
  realisation of their socio-economic rights
• Noble et al. (2006) child-focused
  multidimensional model of child poverty
• Dawes et al. (2007) recommend indicators that
  will contribute to an evidence and rights-based
  approach to monitoring the well-being of children
  in South Africa

5
Centre for the Analysis of South African Social
Policy
University of Oxford
6
South African Index of Multiple Deprivation for
Children

• Measure of multiple deprivation at a small area
  level for the whole of South Africa
• Child focused domains and indicators
• Produced with Human Sciences Research Council
  using 2001 Census, funded by Save the Children
  Sweden
• 5 domains of deprivation (income and material,
  employment, education, living environment,
  adequate care)
• 14 indicators

7
South African Index of Multiple Deprivation for
Children example indicators

• Living environment deprivation domain
• Number of children living in a household without
  piped water inside their dwelling or yard or
  within 200 metres
• Number of children living in a household without
  a pit latrine with ventilation or flush toilet
• Number of children living in a household without
  use of electricity for lighting
• Number of children living in a household without
  access to a telephone
• Number of children living in a household that is
  a shack
• Number of children living in a household that is
  crowded
• Education deprivation domain
• Number of children (9-15 years inclusive) who are
  in the wrong grade for their age
• Number of children (7-15 years inclusive) who are
  not in school

8
Barnes, H., Wright, G., Noble, M. and Dawes, A.
(2007) The South African Index of Multiple
Deprivation for Children Census 2001, Cape Town
HSRC Press.
Available from www.hsrcpress.ac.za or
www.casasp.ox.ac.uk
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New research into child poverty in South Africa

• Poverty or child poverty can be defined using
  researcher judgement (expert definition) or a
  democratic approach (views of the general
  population) - in South Africa, poverty has mainly
  been defined by experts
• Compare expert definition of child resources
  poverty with adult and child definitions of an
  acceptable standard of living for children
• Child views are as important as/more important
  than adults and experts
• there is a growing recognition that children
  are social actors in their own right a
  recognition that children themselves are best
  informed about their lives and the issues that
  are meaningful to them. (Ridge, 2002)
• Examine extent of child poverty in South Africa
  using different definitions

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Methodology adult and child definition

• Adult
• Qualitative component - 48 focus groups held in 9
  of South Africas 11 official languages in 6
  provinces for each of the black African,
  coloured, Indian and white population groups and
  for a range of incomes
• Participants discussed what they considered
  essential or necessities that everyone (adults
  and children separately) in South Africa should
  have, be able to do or have access to
• Quantitative component - module in South African
  Social Attitudes Survey 2007
• Adults were asked which of a list of items or
  activities for children are essential in order
  for children to enjoy an acceptable standard of
  living in South Africa today
• Child
• 15 large focus groups in Western Cape and Eastern
  Cape involving 160 children from different
  backgrounds (population group, urban/rural,
  income)
• Participants discussed what children need to have
  an acceptable standard of living
• 13 small group discussions involving 44 children
• Participants discussed in detail which of a list
  of items for children are necessities and which
  are luxuries

12
Centre for the Analysis of South African Social
Policy
University of Oxford
13
Adult views general

• The basics
• Well something that is not really there but it
  is obvious, it is the basic things such as
  shelter, housing, food, access to basic
  sanitation such as water, lights so that people
  can live decently. I know it is basic but it is
  so that parents can give these things to
  children. If the parents are on the streets or
  unemployed then they cant give their children
  the basic for their upbringing. (Gauteng, low
  income, urban)
• Toys, especially educational toys
• Playgrounds, sports facilities, youth centres
  (safe activities)
• Clothing protection from elements and social
  acceptability (respectable, presentable,
  belonging)
• Facilitator Can you explain decent clothing to
  me? What do you mean by that? C It must be
  clean and warm and not torn. The parents must see
  to it that the child does not wear old clothes.
  (Western Cape, middle income, urban)
• Separate rooms for adults and children
• Clean and safe local environment (regular rubbish
  collection, street lighting, no crime/drugs)
• Family and love
• A child has safety and security when they grow
  up in a family. (KwaZulu-Natal, low income,
  rural)
• Discipline and guidance (respect)
• Right to be a child
• Access to hospitals, doctors, clinics, medicines
• Good nutrition (for health and to help children
  function at school and in play)

14
Adult views education

• Basic education of good quality (for employment
  and future prospects, for keeping children away
  from a life of crime, and to teach children
  language and communication skills)
• It education is important for a childs
  future and it opens opportunities for a child.
  (KwaZulu-Natal, low income, rural)
• School uniform
• School fees
• Free education, as we do not have money to pay
  school fees. (Western Cape, middle income,
  urban)
• School equipment (stationery and books)
• Food
• Children must have a good meal before they go
  to school. Food enables them to concentrate at
  school. (North West, low income, rural)
• Transport to school (buses and bicycles)
• I think it would be good if the schools can
  assist parents in getting a bus to transport
  children, especially during winter. Most of the
  children are at home because they cannot go to
  school. If they go, they are soak wet because of
  the rainy weather.
• (Western Cape, low income, urban)
• In school smaller class sizes, provision of text
  books, safety, racial integration
• Out of school libraries and resources at home
  (books, computer, desk, parental interest)
• Cultural activities

15
Adult views SASAS 2007
Percentage of adults responding that an item is
essential for children to have an acceptable
standard of living in South Africa today
16
Child views election manifesto

• Safer schools
• Safer environment
• Death penalty for criminals
• More job creation
• Build youth centres
• Invest more money in the country
• More health centres
• More schools
• More houses
• Arrest drug dealers
• Employ more police
• Higher salary for labourers
• More training centres for under-privileged
• Sports centres
• Stop corruption
• Safer orphanages
• Stop child abuse

• Stop poverty
• Stop racism
• Give clean water
• Give everyone electricity
• Stop corruption
• Stop criminals and crime
• Education
• Give housing to poor people
• Street lighting
• Sport opportunities
• Make more jail facilities
• Bring back death penalty
• Try harder to get AIDS medicine/cure
• Bring down inflation
• Make less pollution
• Free education
• Business opportunities
• More power stations

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Methodology measurement

• Expert definition of resources poverty will be
  measured using Income and Expenditure Survey
  2005/2006 - various poverty lines (absolute and
  relative) and equivalence scales will be tested
• Adult definition will be measured using the
  possession questions in SASAS 2007 to find out
  how many children lack the items that are
  considered necessary by a majority of the
  population
• Future work measuring child poverty with
  definition developed by children

18
Some CASASP publications on child poverty issues

• Noble, M., Wright, G., Barnes, H., Noble, S.,
  Ntshongwana, P., Gutierrez-Romero, R., McLennan,
  D. and Avenell, D. (2006) The Child Support
  Grant A Sub-Provincial Analysis of Eligibility
  and Take Up in January 2004, Pretoria Department
  of Social Development, Republic of South Africa.
• Noble, M., Wright, G., Barnes, H., Noble, S.,
  Ntshongwana, P., Gutierrez-Romero, R. and
  Avenell, D. (2006) The Child Support Grant A
  Sub-Provincial Analysis of Eligibility and Take
  Up in January 2005, Pretoria Department of
  Social Development, Republic of South Africa.
• Noble, M., Wright, G. and Cluver, L. (2006)
  Developing a child-focused and multidimensional
  model of child poverty for South Africa, Journal
  of Children and Poverty, 12(1) 39-53.
• Barnes, H., Cluver, L. and Wright, G. (2007)
  Findings from the Indicators of Poverty and
  Social Exclusion Project Children, Key Report 5,
  Pretoria Department of Social Development,
  Republic of South Africa.
• Barnes, H. and Wright, G. (2007) Findings from
  the Indicators of Poverty and Social Exclusion
  Project Education, Key Report 6, Pretoria
  Department of Social Development, Republic of
  South Africa.
• Noble, M., Wright, G. and Cluver, L. (2007)
  Conceptualising, defining and measuring child
  poverty in South Africa an argument for a
  multidimensional approach, in A. Dawes, R. Bray
  and A. Van der Merwe (eds) Monioring child
  well-being a South African rights-based
  approach, Cape Town HSRC Press.
• Barnes, H., Wright, G., Noble, M. and Dawes, A.
  (2007) The South African Index of Multiple
  Deprivation for Children 2001, Cape Town HSRC
  Press.
• Website http//www.casasp.ox.ac.uk Email
  casasp_at_socres.ox.ac.uk