Poverty and inequality profile of households in the Northern Province of South Africa

The paper gives an overview of the socio-economic profile of access to resources and social behaviour of rural households of the Northern Province of South Africa. It is based on the survey conducted in 24 villages covering 586 households. The preliminary results reflect a number of disparities among men and female household heads and their occupations. Women farmers tend to dominate the agricultural sector, while men are predominantly in the service and industry sectors. Also, male headed households have more members than female headed households, which are mostly single parents and have higher percentage of members under fifteen (reflecting high fertility rates). Unemployment is rife, coupled with a significant number of old (retired) people, and more women involved in subsistence agriculture. Migration is prevalent, and is a source of support for households to supplement their livelihood, since farming is not enough to meet household requirements. There is still a gap in access to water and land resources. These results pose major challenges for agriculture in the new millennium since access and distribution of resources will be imminent.