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Africa Policy E-JournalSouth Africa: Gender Statistics +++++++++++++++++++++Document Profile+++++++++++++++++++++ Region: Southern Africa For regularly updated announcements and press releases about reports on women's issues in South Africa and other countries, see South African Women's Net updates (http://www.womensnet.org.za/newweeks/newweek.htm). +++++++++++++++++end profile++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Women & Men in South Africa Central Statistics 1998 Dr FM Orkin, Head Published by Central Statistics ISBN 0-621-28061-5 Author: Debbie Budlender, Directorate of Analysis and Statistical Consulting, Central Statistics (CSS) Much of this report is based on data from the 1995 October household survey. The detailed statistical tables from that survey are available as 'October household survey', CSS statistical release P0317 (South Africa as a whole), and P0317.1 to P0317.9 (the nine provinces). These can be ordered from Central Statistics, Pretoria, in both printed and electronic format. Introduction In May 1994, South Africa was reunited under a new, democratically elected government. The interim constitution under which the new government operated, and the final constitution which came into effect in 1997, established non-discrimination as one of the most important guiding principles for the country. In particular, the government has committed itself to abolition of the race and gender inequality which previously characterised the country. The new government reaffirmed its commitment to gender equality when it ratified the international Convention for the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) in 1995. In his March 1996 budget speech, the then Minister of Finance, Chris Liebenberg, promised that the government would disaggregate data by gender, introduce targets and indicators of gender equality, and develop a performance review mechanism in respect of gender. At the time of the 1995 Beijing Conference on the status of women a number of countries produced booklets containing basic statistics on women and men. Although South Africa produced a narrative report for the conference, it was not yet ready to produce a 'Women and Men' statistical booklet. This report is South Africa's 'Women and Men' publication. Gender statistics are urgently required. The Office on the Status of Women, the Commission on Gender Equality, and the gender desks within national departments and at provincial level, need information on the situation of women and men. All spheres of government need gender-disaggregated information to fulfil their planning functions. And, as time goes by, South Africans inside and outside government will want to measure whether policies and programmes are succeeding in addressing gender inequalities. For the Central Statistical Service, this booklet also provides an opportunity to indicate the wealth of information that is available. While there are gaps in our information about many aspects of South African society, there is also a lot of data which is not being fully utilised, or has not been analysed. This report is an invitation to South Africans to improve levels of utilisation of what is available, and to make proposals on how the information base can be further expanded and improved. What are gender statistics? Gender statistics extend beyond disaggregation of indicators into the categories of women and men. They focus on issues of particular relevance to women and men, girls and boys, and their different roles and positions in society. Statistics on household distance from water or fuel, for example, have different implications for women and men. For it is usually women who spend additional time collecting these necessities of life when they are not readily available to a household. Virtually every aspect of society has its gendered aspect. Not all issues are measurable, and data are not yet available on many of those issues which can be measured. Nevertheless, there are far more gender statistics available than can be presented in this short booklet. In making choices about what should be covered, priority has been given to some of the standard indicators covered in 'Women and Men' booklets from other countries. This enables comparison of South Africa's progress with that of countries at similar levels of development, and with similar problems. However, indicators have been adapted to measure our special problems. In particular, many of the indicators are further disaggregated by population group, or urban and non-urban areas. Most of the statistics in this booklet are derived from the Central Statistics' annual October household survey. During the 1995 survey, 30 000 households, selected so as to be representative of the full population, were visited. Questions were asked both about the household, and about each of the individual members of the households surveyed. The results of the survey were then 'weighted up' so as to give figures for the full population. The weighting of the 1995 October household survey was based on estimates of the population derived from the 1991 population census. However, preliminary results from the 1996 population census, released in June 1997, suggested that we have been overestimating the size of the country's population by about ten percent (CSS, 1997). One of the more important causes of previous overestimation was that demographers thought that the fertility rate, particularly in non-urban areas, was higher than it now seems. This means that the 1996 census will also probably show a decrease in the proportion of the population under the age of five years, a decrease in those of school-going age, and a decrease among those who live in non-urban areas and what were previously constituted as 'homelands' or bantustans. Final results from Census '96 will only be available in September 1998. Until then, the CSS does not have enough accurate detailed information to recalculate weights for surveys such as the OHS. Figures shown in this booklet, therefore, are based on previous estimates of the population. To reduce possible error, most figures are reported as percentages rather than as absolute numbers. Nevertheless, the expected change in age, geographical and other aspects of the population profile suggest that even the percentages presented may, on occasion, be slightly inaccurate. Contents Introduction Population Families & households: Income, Marital status, Childbearing, Children Living conditions: Access to water, Access to wood, Refuse disposal Work: Economic status, Hours worked, Work status, Employment by sector, Employment by occupation, Public service employment, Trade unions, Wages and salaries Education and training: Preschool attendance, Educational achievement, Tertiary education, Skills training Health: Life expectancy, Facilities, Medical aid, Contraception, HIV/Aids Crime: Rape Decision-making: National assembly, Provincial legislatures,
Public service management, Conclusion Sources List of Figures Figure 1: Distribution of the population by province and gender Figure 8: Households fetching water for domestic use by population group Population Group Percentage Fetching Water African 71% Coloured 28% Indian 3% White 3% Total 51% Figure 22: Mean hourly earnings of employees by population group and gender Population Group/Gender Rands per hour African Women 7,67 African Men 8,61 Coloured Women 7,07 Coloured Men 8,63 Indian Women 11,99 Indian Men 16,19 White Women 17,58 White Men 29,13 Figure 39: Managers in the public service by population group and gender Population Group/Gender % of Managers in Public Service African Women 7% African Men 29% Coloured Women 1% Coloured Men 4% Indian Women 1% Indian Men 3% White Women 5% White Men 51%
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Africa Policy E-Journal
