CSIR Building and Construction Technology publication - Akani

CSIR contributes to UNDP South Africa Human Development Report 2003

CSIR Building and Construction Technology researchers Geci Karuri, Lucy Chege and Dennis Macozoma (now of the National Department of Transport) contributed to the recently-published United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) South Africa Human Development Report 2003.

The report identifies and analyses five challenges facing sustainable development in South Africa:

  • the eradication of poverty and extreme income and wealth inequalities,

  • the provision of access to quality and affordable basic services to all South Africans,

  • the promotion of environmental sustainability,

  • a sustained reduction in the unemployment rate, and

  • the attainment of sustainable high growth rates.

It shows how these challenges are strongly inter-related and identifies underlying trends and policies that have contributed to weak and uneven development outcomes. As a result, the Human Development Index has worsened (from 0.73 in 1994 to 0.67 in 2003), poverty still engulfs 48.5% of the population (21.9 million in 2002), income inequality has increased (from 0.60 in 1995 to 0.63 in 2001), the majority of households have limited access to basic services, and the official unemployment rate has sharply increased to more than 30% in 2003.

The report offers a strategy and suggests a policy re-orientation to meet South Africa's sustainable development challenges. This includes:

  • changes in the current aims and utilisation of fiscal and monetary policy to ensure that together they promote growth, redistribution, poverty reduction and the creation of employment,

  • withdrawal of explicit or implicit subsidies which favour capital-intensive and/or large-scale enterprises, and

  • transformation of the private sector through the development of differential tax incentives, access to subsidies, and access to government procurement that support a more broadly-based transformation of ownership, improved income distribution, and reduced unemployment.

The report argues that these policy changes depend on strategic political interventions that focus policies and support measures on achieving the goals of sustainable development. It also emphasises the importance of engendering processes that are inclusive, transparent and democratic, and that empower the poorest sections of the population.

CSIR Boutek's contributions were focused on the aspect of social services and infrastructure delivery. The chapter concludes with a proposition that addressing the challenges and achieving sustainability in service delivery relies on the powers and capabilities of the various stakeholders.

Download the following documents:

Summary: South Africa Human Development Report 2003 [File size 204KB]

Full version: South Africa Human Development Report 2003 [Web format]

Related links:

Akani, July 2004

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