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18 September 2008

Since 1994, democratic South Africa has waged a war on poverty. This is reflected in the types of policies adopted by government as well as in the spending on social policies. The challenges inherited from apartheid are massive. These range from an anti-poor economic structure to a deliberate denial of access to basic services and infrastructure, assets, education and training as well as settlement patterns that placed the poor far from economic opportunities and that discouraged establishment of opportunities in poor areas.

Much of government's work is already aimed at addressing poverty and ensuring a better life for all, and significant progress has been made in this regard. Anti-poverty initiatives have been successfully mainstreamed into the planning and implementation of government programmes and in the budgeting process. Moreover, government's policy orientation has been targeted to the poorest of the poor.

However, there is still much that needs to be done. Certain groups in our society continue to find themselves in poverty. These groups include, for example, women, particularly those who are single parents, children, the youth, the aged and families where one or more family member has a disability. Trends also show that there is growing inequality between the poor and rich members of society, associated with race, gender and location.

The adoption of an anti-poverty strategy will ensure that the work that has already begun is harnessed more effectively. It will enable a strategic focus and broaden the scope of government's initiatives to deal with a wider range of issues linked to poverty and social exclusion. It will provide measures that tackle the root causes of poverty, including addressing inequality of opportunity, combined with a commitment to giving people freedom.

But the fight against poverty cannot simply be the responsibility of central government. It must involve all sectors of society, all spheres of government, other parts of the public sector, businesses, and voluntary and community organisations.

The overall objective of the strategy is to eradicate poverty. At the centre of the fight against poverty: the creation of economic opportunities and enabling or empowering communities and individuals to access these opportunities.  
The provision of a safety net in the form of social assistance and the provision of basic services continues to be critical, but it also seeks to empower individuals and communities to support themselves.

The strategy builds on the work of the years since 1994. It also seeks to change the trajectory of government's anti-poverty initiatives. It says that as we go forward, we need to strengthen our resolve to reduce the incidence of poverty as well as prevent the reproduction of poverty within households and communities.

Central to this resolve is the ending of intergenerational poverty through improving the economic situation of households.  This broad approach to poverty allows for engagement with the reality of poverty and the combination of things that should be done to deal with it.

The framework presents a building foundation for developing a comprehensive anti-poverty strategy. The framework will underpin programmes of policy reform, investment projects and capacity-building.

Further details around the release will be released shortly (time and venue).

For more information please contact:
Denzil Taylor
Spokesperson to the Deputy President
Cell: 082 561 3772

Issued by: The Presidency
18 September 2008