Dorrit Posel

Have Migration Patterns in post-Apartheid South Africa Changed?

In post-apartheid South Africa, it may have been expected that circular or temporary internal labour migration would have been replaced by the permanent settlement of Africans at places of employment. However, the evidence suggests that temporary internal labour migration in the country has not declined; rather it appears to have increased, particularly because of the rise in female labour migration. Africans continue to migrate, mostly from households in rural areas, to work or to look for work and they continue to retain ties with, and membership in, their households of origin. These findings resonate with those from recent research on cross-border migration into South Africa: many people entering South Africa do not see themselves as immigrants who wish to settle permanently in the country, but as circular migrants. More research is needed to understand the nature of, and reasons for, this temporary labour migration in and into the country.

Who are the heads of household, what do they do, and is the concept of headship useful? An analysis of headship in South Africa

In most household surveys, headship is not defined by objective criteria but is self-identified by respondents. The first part of this article examines whether self-reported heads in South Africa are those household members in whom more control over decision-making is vested. Although the head is typically found to be the oldest household member, there is also a strong relationship between headship and the highest income-earner in the household. Furthermore, heads have final say over decisions even when they do not earn the most income. This is the case particularly in households headed by women. The second part of the article evaluates whether the gender of the head provides a useful marker for distinguishing between household types and their access to resources. Female- and male-headed households are not homogeneous groupings, and male-headed households are not equally advantaged. However, female-headed households in South Africa on average contain fewer income-earners, whose income is also lower, than male-headed households. Overall, therefore, households headed by women are considerably more likely to be economically vulnerable.

Is marriage a dying institution in South Africa? Exploring changes in marriage in the context of ilobolo payments

abstract This article describes racial differences in marriage rates in post-apartheid South Africa and considers one possible reason for these differences related to the traditional practice of ilobolo among African families. We use nationally representative micro data to document very low and declining marriage rates among young Africans, large differences in marriage rates between Africans and whites, as well as rising rates of cohabitation, particularly among young African women and men. We then review the payment of bride wealth in this context, drawing on the historical literature as well as on popular media resources and quantitative data collected in the South African Social Attitudes Survey of 2005, to explore attitudes towards ilobolo as practised in contemporary African society.

Gendered Trends in Poverty in the Post-Apartheid Period, 1997 - 2006

This study investigates whether trends in the extent and depth of poverty in South Africa over the past decade have been gendered. We examine whether females are more likely to live in poor households than males and whether this has changed over time, and how poverty has changed for female-headed and male-headed households. We use data from the 1997 and 1999 October Household Surveys and the 2004 and 2006 General Household Surveys, which have the advantage of collecting information on the individual receipt of social grant income. We find that although poverty rates have fallen for both males and females, and for male-headed and female-headed households, the decline has been larger for males and for male-headed households. Gender differences in poverty rates have therefore widened over the period. We show that these findings are robust to the possible underestimation of household income and to adjustments for household composition.

A reconsideration of what and who is middle class in South Africa

In this paper, we revisit ‘what and who’ is middle class in South Africa using data collected in the 2008 National Income Dynamics Study. First, we consider how to identify the middle class based on two broad definitions adopted in the international economics literature: a middle class defined by the middle share of the national income distribution; and a middle class defined by an absolute level of affluence and lifestyle. We explore alternative ways of capturing the ‘middle income strata’ and we suggest an approach for identifying threshold levels of income associated with middle-class affluence. Second, we show that the size and the composition of the middle class in South Africa are both very sensitive to how the middle class is defined. In particular, we demonstrate that there is very little overlap between the two broad definitions, a finding which reflects very high levels of poverty and inequality in the country.

Here to work: the socioeconomic characteristics of informal dwellers in post-apartheid South Africa

Government policy towards informal settlements in south africa reflects a tension between two approaches: recognizing the legitimacy of informal settlements and aggressively removing these so-called “slums”.(1) drawing on nationally representative household survey data and interviews with 25 individuals relocated from an informal settlement to a “transit camp”, this paper argues that more detailed attention should be paid to the changing connection between housing, household formation and work. Whereas cities in the apartheid era were marked by relatively stable industrial labour and racially segregated family housing, today the location and nature of informal dwellings are consistent with two important trends: demographic shifts, including towards smaller more numerous households, and employment shifts, including a move from permanent to casual and from formal to informal work. This study is therefore able to substantiate in more detail a longstanding insistence by informal settlement residents that they live where they do for reasons vital to their everyday survival. The paper also highlights the limitations of relocations not only to urban peripheries but also to other parts of cities, and it underscores the importance of upgrading informal settlements through in situ development.

Women, income and poverty: Gendered access to resources in Post-Apartheid South Africa

abstract Far-reaching changes in the post-apartheid period in South Africa are likely to have affected gendered access to resources. In this Article, we use nationally representative household survey data to examine whether trends in the extent of income poverty over a recent ten-year period have been gendered. We find that females are more likely than males to live in poor households. Poverty rates have fallen from 1997 to 2006, and particularly following the expansion of the social grant system. However, the decline in poverty rates has been larger among males than among females. Higher levels of unemployment and lower earnings among women, as well as changes in household structure, help explain why the gender gap in poverty rates has widened over the period. We find also that female-headed households are far more vulnerable to income poverty than male-headed households and further, that the extent of poverty has fallen by more among households headed by men. However, we show that there are significant differences in poverty risks not only among female-headed households, but also among male-headed households, depending on the employment status of household members.

The Male Marital Earnings Premium in the Context of Bride Wealth Payments: Evidence from South Africa

This study explores the nature of the male marital earnings premium in the context of a developing country in which the payment of bride wealth is practiced. We use data from the South African Labor Force Survey of September 2004 and the Labor Force Survey Panel (2001–4), the first national panel available in South Africa. We show that a robust and positive premium to marriage in cross‐sectional estimations is substantially reduced after controlling for individual fixed effects. Furthermore, we find evidence of an additional source of endogeneity created by the positive selection of men into marriage with faster earnings growth in the initial periods of the panel. Our results are to be expected if the payment of bride wealth or ilobolo, by a prospective husband to the bride’s family, is a significant constraint to marriage among black men in South Africa.

Counting Fathers in South Africa: Issues of Definition, Methodology and Policy

Abstract Current national data-bases in South Africa do not reveal the number or profile of fathers in the country. It is only possible to derive an estimate of fathers by making a series of inferences from other information contained in these data sets. In this paper, we argue that it is important for national surveys to directly identify which men are fathers. Internationally, research shows that engaged forms of fatherhood benefit children, fathers themselves and domestic relationships. In South Africa, research on fathers is limited. A major explanation for this is that, until recently, the interests of children were considered inseparable from those of the mother. The context of childcare in South Africa is changing. The legal framework is paying more attention to the rights of fathers and the numerous parental AIDS deaths are confronting fathers with more care-giving responsibility than ever before. Fathers are a potential resource to children but this is currently under-appreciated and not properly tapped. A start to remedying this situation is for national surveys to gather information on fathers.

Circular Migration: A View from Destination Households in Two Urban Informal Settlements in South Africa

Abstract This article analyses dual household membership and the return intentions of migrants, using data collected from migrants living in two informal settlements in South Africa. While dual household membership is very common among the migrants we surveyed, less than half of these migrants wanted to return to their other household in the future. We explore the correlates of dual household membership and intended return migration and we consider the implications of our findings for measures of circular individual migration using existing cross-sectional datasets.