The dynamics of inequality in South Africa have evinced various trends since the advent of
democracy. While income inequality among the races may have somewhat declined, this is not
necessarily the case with regard to the income gap among various social strata within the population
as whole. Rising income inequality is not unique to South Africa: it finds expression in most OECD
countries, and even in countries such as China where poverty has been reduced. Yet Brazil seems to
have succeeded in the past few years to buck the trend.
What are reasons behind these global trends, and what are the lessons that South Africa can draw
from these experiences?
The burden of inequality falls inordinately on the poor and the marginalised. Yet, as Richard
Wilkinson and Kate Pickett demonstrate in their book, The Spirit Level, inequality has a negative
impact even on the rich. This relates to such issues as the magnitude of violent crime, educational
performance and even teenage pregnancies among both the rich and the poor. It also relates to the
magnitude and quality of economic growth. It is therefore in the interest of all sectors of society that
inequality is addressed.
In trying to identify holistic approaches to address inequality, it is necessary to look beyond income
inequality and interrogate indicators such as assets, access to services and opportunity, and social
capital. These indicators articulate with one another in virtuous or adverse ways, depending on the
effectiveness or otherwise of the interventions applied. How does South Africa fare in this regard?
Measures required to deal with inequality include the absorption of more people into economic
activity, quality education, efficient public services, progressive taxation and appropriate spatial
settlement patterns. While economic growth is critical to dealing with inequality, such growth
should be pro-poor; and pro-poor economic and social interventions should be pro-growth.
It is appropriate that public policy should target both the reduction of poverty and inequality,
proceeding from the understanding that the reduction of poverty may not necessarily result in the
reduction of inequality