Public Employment Programmes and Social Protection in South Africa

Des ouvrirers à Soweto, Afrique du Sud — Cyril Le Tourneur d'Ison

Project start date: 2023

Status
Completed
Project end date: 2025
AFD financing amount: 19 600
Country and region: South Africa
Partners: The Presidency of the Republic of South Africa
Research program: Research on inequalities

What is the role of Public Employment Programmes (PEPs) in South Africa’s social protection system, and how do they contribute to employment, inclusion, and inequality reduction? The Extension of the EU-AFD Research Facility on Inequalities program seeked to answer this question.

Context

In South Africa, escalating unemployment, rising poverty and structural inequality remain persistent challenges, with young people and marginalized communities disproportionately affected. Many workers remain excluded from stable formal employment, and rely on social grants for basic income security. PEPs have emerged as a key policy instrument to address these structural gaps, providing temporary work, income support and skills development opportunities.

These programmes operate alongside traditional social protection measures, including cash transfers and grants. While PEPs offer immediate employment and income, it is critical to understand their broader impact beyond income effects, and how they intersect with poverty reduction, inclusion, and long-term labour market outcomes.

This project is part of the Extension of the EU-AFD Research Facility on Inequalities. Coordinated by AFD and financed by the European Commission, the Extension of the Facility will contribute to the development of public policies aimed at reducing inequalities in four countries: South Africa, Mexico, Colombia and Indonesia over the period 2021-2025.

Find out more about the Extension in South Africa

Objectives

To better understand the role of PEPs within South Africa’s evolving social protection landscape, this study analyzed how they intersect with unemployment, inequality, and social policy. The study highlighted structural inequalities – such as land dispossession, concentrated economic power, and spatial inequities – that perpetuate poverty and unemployment.

In particular, the paper focused on redefining the relationship between social assistance and public employment. The study explored how PEPs can go beyond merely providing income support to leveraging the added value of work, enhancing social inclusion, and fostering skills development. The study revealed how integrated and differentiated strategies are needed in order to address the diverse labour market challenges by advocating for scalable, rights-based employment guarantees and adaptive policy frameworks to balance social and economic imperatives.