by Sandy Govindsamy

Created on: January 11, 2011   Last Updated: January 12, 2011

South Africa is a study in contrasts: affluent gated communities juxtaposed against squalid informal settlements, excellent private schooling compared against a faltering public school system, private health care that rivals the best in the world versus an indifferent and failing public healthcare system. Perhaps it is not surprising to hear then a small minority of this country’s population owns most of its wealth. Poverty and inequality in South Africa is largely experienced by the country’s black population and has arisen due to a number of factors.

The South African government’s infamous apartheid policy up till 1990, legalized racism against non-white citizens and segregated different racial groups into designated geographical areas. This was a significant contributing factor to the levels of inequality currently experienced since government spending prioritized infrastructure, educational and societal development within areas where the white population lived. White South Africans also benefitted from being hired almost exclusively for senior positions in government parastatals along with the generous included benefits. During the apartheid era, non-whites received a much lower standard of public schooling, social benefits and human rights (including the right to move around freely or live in an area of their choosing). Due to the apartheid policy being practiced for approximately 20 years from 1970 to 1990, the resulting divide in terms of inequality and poverty is deeply entrenched and difficult to reverse quickly.

In 1994, South Africa held its first democratic election when black people were given the right to vote. This led to the election of the African National Congress as the ruling political party. The newly elected government made promises to redress the imbalances of the past and took steps toward making schooling accessible to all, and providing government housing to the poor. However, social programs initiated by government have been plagued by corruption and mismanagement by top-ranking officials.

Another method that government is using to address the wealth gap is broad-based black economic empowerment schemes. This involves allowing the black public or black-owned companies to participate in share offerings, through which they can acquire a stake in successful South African companies for a fraction of the market cost. This type of wealth redistribution has also come under criticism, as there is debate to how ‘broad-based’

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