Exploring the Gendered Dimensions of Poverty: A Relational Analysis of Rural Livelihoods in Venda, Limpopo, South Africa

This study examines the gendered dimensions of poverty in rural Venda, Limpopo, South Africa, using a relational approach that challenges the conventional feminization-of-poverty narrative. While women face wage discrimination, land dispossession, and extensive unpaid care work, rural men experience hidden vulnerabilities such as exclusion from social protection and the destabilization of breadwinner roles. Drawing on the Gender and Development (GAD) framework and intersectionality theory, the research reveals how patriarchal structures, policy blind spots, and spatial inequalities shape interconnected poverty experiences. Using a qualitative case study design, the study engaged 15 purposively selected households in Thohoyandou through semi-structured interviews, gender-segregated focus group discussions, and participant observation. Reflexive thematic analysis identified four structural drivers: chronic unemployment, gender wage gaps, service delivery failures, and the rural–urban divide. Women earned 38% less than men for comparable agricultural work and performed over 6 h of unpaid care daily, while men’s exclusion from grants led to psychosocial strain and household tensions. Findings show that policies like Black Economic Empowerment and the Expanded Public Works Programme remain urban-centric and poorly adapted to rural gender realities. The study calls for intersectional, place-based reforms, joint land titling, rural childcare infrastructure, and gender-transformative social protection to address differentiated needs and disrupt entrenched inequalities.