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4. PUBLICATIONS
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4.1 STRUGGLES TO ESCAPE POVERTY IN SOUTH AFRICA: RESULTS FROM A PURPOSIVE RURAL SURVEY
(by John Sender)
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John Sender's analysis is focused on the appalling reality of rural poverty in South Africa
and the strategies evolved at government level to combat the harsh existence of people
living in these areas. But while his focus is South African in scope, his results and
analysis should be of interest to a wider audience in Southern Africa.
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The degree and nature of rural deprivation is documented in Mpumalanga province, which
borders both Swaziland and Mocambique, and the sources of income available to the poor
in rural South Africa is assessed. Sender's critique of academic literature on poverty
is directed predominantly at the 'internationally fashionable conclusion that poor women
can hope to survive by relying on self-employment, especially self-employment as crop or
livestock producers'.
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Results of a large-scale purposive sample of the poorest rural women are contrasted with
the methods and conclusions of other research into 'income poverty'. The survey research
leads Sender to some unexpected conclusions concerning the dynamics of the struggles of a
specific gender and class. It is shown that despite the poverty of the purposively surveyed
women, some of these women live in households where standards of living are much less
degraded than the sample average. In addition, their children are much more likely to
survive and acquire education. Sender examines the reasons for this relative success as a
guide to an escape route from poverty.
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The distinguishing demographic characteristics of women who have taken the first steps on
these routes are analysed, in the political context of their relative success. Sender argues
that the success of these particular households appears to be based on the fact that they
contain a number of women who are able to earn significantly more than women in other
households. These women are earning relatively high wages in very stable employment on
large-scale farms that are run under the auspices of the state. Part of their success stems
from advantages derived from their parents and, especially, from the fact that their own
mothers were relatively highly educated. These successful women also benefited from state
policies that discriminate against their competitors in the unskilled agricultural labour
market, namely Mozambican immigrant workers.
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These immigrants have been unable to build up as useful a network of relatives and
neighbours as non-Mozambican, local workers. More importantly, Sender argues that
Mozambicans continue to have much less access to education and other state-supplied
resources. As agricultural workers, they are denied entry to remunerative state employment
and their ability to bargain with employers is relatively weak, because of their low levels
of education and their uncertain legal status within South Africa.
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Six years after the ending of the apartheid regime, a new Immigration Act is still awaited
in South Africa. In effect, the South African government has taken no effective steps to
improve the status of Mozambican workers on farms. In addition, the state has failed to
develop a coherent policy for state-owned agricultural land. Recent policy statements from
the Minister for Lands and Agriculture suggests that this land may well be allocated to
"suitable emerging black farmers", but does not mention the implications of such an
allocation for women, or the poorest rural households.
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This Integrated Programme of Land Redistribution and Agricultural Development can be seen
on the SARPN website at http://www.hsrc.ac.za. Sender challenges the notion of small-scale
enterprises offering a realistic escape route from poverty arguing that employment on
larger-scale state or agribusiness farms is the source of far more reliable and secure wage
earnings.
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Escaping the worst forms of deprivation depends on women's wages in rural labour markets,
rather than their incomes from self-employment, but conventional microeconomic theory cannot
explain the distribution of wages in these markets. The South African government has been
unduly influenced by such conventional theories. This influence, together with the rhetoric
of the development aid bureaucracy, has resulted in its failure to consider alternative
policies that are relevant to the poorest people.
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Reviewed by Dr Scott Drimie (HSRC)
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Linking up: This working document, and others in the series, is available from the School of
African and Oriental Studies in London. Readers may request a copy or subscribe by sending an
e-mail to:
jb26@soas.ac.uk
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4.2 WORLD TRADE ORGANISATION: WHICH WAY FOR ZAMBIA?
(edited by Barbara Lopi and Patrick Sapallo)
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This recently published book reflects the proceedings of a national conference held last
year in Zambia in the wake of the Seattle WTO Conference. The conference was organised by
the Zambian Association for Research and Development (ZARD) and was designed to create an
awareness of WTO issues in Zambia with a view to informing positions for future WTO
negotiations. The conference brought together policy makers, donor agencies, the private
sector, academics, civil society and the media to exchange information on the WTO and its
implications for Zambia.
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The book covers a wide range of issues including trade and development, gender and trade,
agriculture, trade and environment, the Lome Convention and the participation of developing
countries in the multi-lateral trading system.
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The book notes that Zambia has been at the receiving end of liberalised trade policies, both
regionally and internationally. Within the region, "Zambia is becoming a dumping ground of
goods" and that regional trade is uneven. It argues that South Africa's clear economic
dominance in the region will see other countries becoming "satellites of the South African
economy".
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The different chapters weigh the arguments of liberalised trade policies in both WTO and
regional groupings, assessing the erosion of the financial base of the local, small-scale
traders and subsistence farmers and their impact on food security especially for rural women
in Zambia. The book argues that Zambia is not yet well prepared for cross-border investments
that may later turn out to be hostile to local production. It also considers the impact of
tax incentives for foreign investors and how they are producing more negative results to the
economy.
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As SADC moves towards a freer trade area, this critique will need to be addressed in a
serious and concerted way if poverty in the region is not to take new forms and profiles.
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Linking up: The book is a publication of Zambia Association of Research and Development
(ZARD). Its ISBN number is 9982-818-29-5. The book has been edited by Barbara Lopi and
Patrick Sapallo. E-mail:
zard@zamnet.zm
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4.3 LESOTHO 20000: PUBLIC PERCEPTIONS AND PERSPECTIVES
(edited by Stephen Rule and Ntsoaki Mapetla)
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The effectiveness of democracy depends to a large extent on the consideration given by
policy makers to the views of members of the electorate. The perceptions and perspectives
of the people of Lesotho were surveyed during 2000 by a questionnaire that covered issues
such as social, economic and political domains of governance, including governance and
corruption, national priorities, service delivery, community participation, crime and
cross-border movement. While the survey did not contain what might be regarded as a
mainstreamed poverty focus, the wide range of data captured in the book is of clear
relevance to debates in the country about developmental outcomes and experiences of
government. As such, the results should inform future debates in Lesotho on these issues.
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Linking up: The book is a joint publication of the Human Sciences Research Council in
Pretoria South Africa and the Institute of Southern African Studies in Lesotho. The ISBN
number is 0-7969-1978-X. The book has been edited by Stephen Rule and Ntsoaki Mapetla.
E-mail:
sprule@hsrc.ac.za
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4.4 THE IGD GUIDE TO THE SOUTHERN AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY
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In its bid to address manifold regional developmental problems, the Southern African
Development Community (SADC) has embarked upon a concerted regional integration process.
The SADC secretariat is presently being restructured to reflect this prime objective. This
book, published by the Johannesburg-based Institute for Global Dialogue, sets out to improve
public understanding of how SADC works and what it attempts to achieve in the region.
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Kato Lambrechts presents a brief introduction of SADC's origins and then provides a detailed
developmental profile of each of the 14 states that belong to SADC. Balefi Tsie, of the
University of Botswana, then discusses the challenges of democratisation and good governance
relating to policy development and integration in the region with an overview of the nature
of the regimes, the forms of governance and the institutional mechanisms for integration.
Rocklyn Williams, a former SANDF officer and now an academic, discusses regional security
issues, arguing that current attempts at healing the divisions in the region are focused on
organisational rather strategic concerns.
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The book also provides an overview of the numerous institutions that have been created to
perform the various functions of SADC, from policy-making to administration. It also takes
into account the recent restructuring envisaged within SADC and examines the objectives, the
requirements and the organising structures of the protocols that guide cooperation among
member states. It also provides contact details for various SADC office bearers and sector
coordinating units. As such it provides a valuable guide to SADC as presently constituted.
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Linking up: The book is published by the Institute for Global Dialogue in Johannesburg; the
ISBN number is 0-620-27623-1. Further information can be obtained from
info@igd.org.za
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4.5 Fighting Poverty: Labour Markets and Inequality in South Africa
(by Haroon Bhorat, Murray Leibbrandt, Muzi Maziya, Servaas van der Berg and Ingrid Woolard)
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Unquestionably, poverty and inequality are among the major challenges that face South Africa
today. In this well-researched and comprehensive volume, the authors:
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use new techniques to measure and analyse household inequality and poverty in
South Africa;
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analyse the nature and functioning of vulnerability in the labour market;
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explore the links between labour market participation and household poverty and
inequality;
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investigate current social and labour market policies;
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examine the implications of current anti-poverty policies and strategies.
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An exciting aspect of this ground-breaking work is the proposals for the development of new
and effective strategies and policies to fight poverty in South Africa. Gary Fields and Erik
Thorbecke of Cornell University comment on the book in the following terms: "This study uses
current methods in modern labour economics, deploys them on appropriate South African data
sets, and answers questions on which previously we had limited knowledge, or in some cases,
none at all. We regard this volume as the major reference work on labour markets, poverty
and inequality in South Africa."
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Linking up:The book can be ordered from Allison Stevens at the Development Policy Research
Unit at the University of Cape Town at e-mail
astevens@hiddingh.uct.ac.za. The book costs
R89 and has an ISBN of 1-919713-62-X.
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