Abstract:
More than two decades after South Africa’s transition to
democracy, more than half of all young people between the
ages of 15 to 24 in the country continue to live in income
poverty. While progress has been made in several areas
of youth well-being, outcomes in crucial domains such as
educational attainment, employment, and health remain low.
The current National Youth Policy1 (NYP) recognises this
reality and places these three domains (economic inclusion
and participation; education, skills, and training; health and
well-being)2 central in its approach. However, by mid-2018,
the policy remains without an implementation plan, and the
country continues to lack a coherent understanding of the
range of deprivations in young people’s lives and the complex
ways in which these interact.
This policy brief focuses specifically on 15 to 24-year-olds
as this is a crucial development stage during which young
people transition from adolescence into young adulthood. It
is also the international definition of youth as applied by the
World Health Organisation.3 We present a set of indicators
based on national, provincial and municipal data from the
2011 Census and – where available – the 2016 Community
Survey data. Indicators such as these could help inform the
implementation of the NYP, both within line departments
and in an across-government approach. The sub-national
analyses allow for the identification of areas of greatest need
within provinces and municipalities. In addition, the focus
on income poverty as well as multidimensional deprivation
highlights the many and complex challenges facing South
Africa’s youth.
The data and maps used in this brief draw on the interactive
Youth Explorer. This online tool is developed by the University
of Cape Town’s Poverty and Inequality Initiative (PII), based at
the Southern Africa Labour and Development Research Unit,
through an ongoing partnership with Statistics South Africa,
OpenUp, the Economies of Regions Learning Network, the
DG Murray Trust and the Centre of Excellence in Human
Development, University of the Witwatersrand.
