A poverty profile of the Western Cape province of South Africa.

Poverty reduction and alleviation is a main priority of the South African government. For the Western Cape province to formulate and implement successful, well-targeted policies aimed at reducing poverty it is important to identify exactly who the poor are. This study aims to determine the extent of poverty in the Western Cape province and construct a clear picture of the poor, using data from the 1995 October Household Survey. In order to arrive at a clear poverty profile the question “who is the ‘representative poor individual’ in the Western Cape?” is answered. After inequality in the province is detailed, the characteristics of the Western Cape poor are then used to explain household income and expenditure. In conclusion it is stated that policymakers’ decision is whether to target those groups with the largest shares in poverty within the Western Cape, or those with the highest incidence of poverty.

I32, R23, D31

poverty, Western Cape