Gender and poverty in South African rural areas

Abstract

In this article, we elicit the effects of gender on poverty reduction efforts in South Africa. Gender plays a huge role in the household decision-making process, as a result, it can determine if whether the household falls into a poverty trap or falls out of poverty. Utilizing a recently Community Survey (2016) we employ a Categorical Principal Component Analysis (CATPCA) to identify potential poverty indicators in South Africa. We then regress the identified components (indicators) using the Ordinary Least Square (OLS) and the Weighted Ordinary Least Square (WOLS) methods to identify the influence they have on non-income poverty. The findings of the study reveal a negative but significant relationship between females residing in traditional (rural) areas and poverty. Furthermore, it was found that females residing in rural and farm areas were most likely to be in poverty compared to their male counterparts. These findings suggest the importance of culture in shaping geographic location of gender in relation to poverty incidences.

Keywords

• culture
• deprivation
• ordinary least square
• principal component analysis
• weighted ordinary least square