This Green Paper on Population Policy is intended to open up debate about how population issues relate to development issues in South Africa. The Ministry of Welfare and Population Development would like to stimulate debate on this issue and to get feedback from members of the public and politicians on how to approach population issues in South Africa.
This is especially important for two reasons. Firstly, the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) is a population statement, reflecting national priorities and needs. It does not, however, spell out certain issues in relation to population trends, and it is therefore necessary to consider whether these gaps need to be filled. Secondly, the International Conference on Population and Development (ICDP), in which South Africa participated, produced a Programme of Action, which South Africa has committed itself to consider in relation to its own policies and programmes.
Many of the concerns of this Programme of Action are already dealt with in the RDP, as well as in the policies and programmes of specific government ministries. This Green Paper aims to clarify which additional issues South Africa needs policy and programmes on, as well as how these should be linked into both the RDP and specific programmes of individual ministries, including the activities of the existing population units in the Department of Welfare.
Thus the Green Paper is concerned with two broad questions:
The process of consultation
The Green Paper is being widely advertised in the media, and public workshops are being held in all provinces. In addition, members of the public are invited to send in written submissions, as individuals or as organisations. The Ministry of Welfare and Population Development will hold a public hearing, and all submissions should indicate whether a public presentation is desired.
The Green Paper aims to open up debate; it does not cover all possible issues, nor does it give all possible approaches to those which are covered. It asks questions and presents some possible approaches to these questions simply in order to stimulate debate and in the hope that all stakeholders, interest groups and concerned citizens will submit their responses, views and policy proposals to the Ministry of Welfare and Population Development to guide it on how best to approach population issues. These responses do not need to be limited by the questions and approaches presented in the Green Paper.
The intention is to use the findings of this consultative process to clarify how to approach population issues within a White Paper on the subject, both within the ministry, which will present policy and strategies in relation to the population units in the Department of Welfare, as well as within a future RDP White Paper, unless the process itself presents alternative suggestions.
Given that this Green Paper is exploring the major components of population change in relation to development, it raises questions which relate to the work of all ministries and government departments involved in development. IT DOES NOT QUESTION THE POLICIES AND PROGRAMMES OF THESE MINISTRIES, but rather considers whether they should be framed within an overarching development policy which integrates population concerns.
The Ministry of Welfare and Population Development has responsibility for initiating debate on this matter, not only in relation to its own functions, but in relation to the RDP and hence to all government functions. The final decisions will therefore be made on the basis of input from all ministries and departments, as well as from the public.
How to read and respond to this Green Paper
Each section of the paper gives some background information and then asks a few questions. There are many possible answers to these questions, but in order to stimulate ideas, some possible answers are presented. Usually these answers do not agree with each other. There are other possible answers, as there are other questions which could be asked. Once you have read each section, you could consider what your own opinion on the question is and write this down. So your submission on the Green Paper could be done in the form of your answers to each or some of the questions in it, but you can also write about other related issues which you think should be taken into account. If you think certain key issues are not considered in this Green Paper, please make the content of your concerns the focus of your submission. You can also send in any research findings or other documentation which you think are relevant.
THE CLOSING DATE FOR SUBMISSIONS IS 31 JULY 1995
Submissions should be sent to:
Or send by e-mail to: submit@polity.org.za
If you would like to attend a provincial workshop to give feedback on the Green Paper, please contact Schalk Human at the above phone, fax or e-mail numbers or address.
Estimated population size, October 1994 40 648 576 Estimated population size, year 1995 43 474 047 Projected population size, year 20102 57 509 675 Projected population size, year 20252 70 083 345 Rate of natural increase2 2,3% 'Doubling time' in years at current rate2 30 years Total fertility rate2 4.1 Birth rate1 23,4 per 1 000 Death rate1 9,4 per 1 000 Natural increase1 14 per 1 000 Percent of population age younger than 152 37,1% Percent of population 65 years and older2 4,5% Life expectancy2 All 66 years Males 63 years Females 68 years Infant mortality rate per thousand live births2 46 Maternal mortality 1992 (World Bank) 0,83 (Department of Health) 0,52 Teenage pregnancy3 330 per 1000 women under age 19 Contraceptive prevalence rate2 Any method 53,0% Modern Methods 51,7% Traditional methods 1,3% Distance from nearest medical service1 Total Less than 1km 29,3% 1km to less than 5 km 35,7% 5 km or more 35,0% Urban Less than 1km 43,6% 1km to less than 5km 43,2% 5km or more 13,3% Non-urban Less than 1km 15,6% 1km to less than 5km 28,5% 5km or more 55,9% Percent of population urban1 48,3% Percent of population non-urban1 51,7% Malnutrition3 Estimated population suffering from malnutrition 2 300 000 Estimated percent of malnourished population between 6 months and 5 years old 40% Estimated percent of malnourished population who are pregnancy and lactating women 8% Illiteracy 30% Rural areas 50% Urban areas 38% Metropolitan areas 27% Education1 Percent of population with no formal education 24,6% Percent of population with education levels from Grade 1 - Std. 5 34,5% Percent of population with education levels from Stds. 6 - 10 36,1% Percent of population with diploma / certificate 3,1% Percent of population with degree 1,5% Other / unspecified 0,3% Persons aged 5 to 24 attending school/college/ university / technikon All 13 096 448 Males 6 692 842 Females 6 403 606 Urban 5 397 229 Male 2 815 033 Female 2 582 196 Non-urban 7 699 219 Male 3 877 809 Female 3 821 410 Persons aged 16 to 24 who have not yet obtained Std 10 and are not attending school Urban 873 940 Male 439 503 Female 434 437 Non-urban 1 245 658 Male 548 734 Female 696 924 Employment1 Economically active population: persons aged 15 years and older who are employed in both formal and informal sector or who are unemployed All 14 297 048 Male 7 975 157 Female 6 321 891 Not economically active population: persons aged 15 years and older but who are not employed or unemployed persons, eg. students and retired persons All 11 397 207 Male 4 428 286 Female 6 968 920 Unemployed, as a percentage of the economically active population All 32,6% Male 26,2% Female 40,6% Urban unemployed, as a percentage of the urban economically active population All 27,8% Male 24,4% Female 32,4% Non-urban unemployed, as a percentage of the non-urban economically active population All 40,1% Male 29,2% Female 52,7% Total number of workers involved in the informal sector 1 574 584 Housing: Type of dwelling1 House / part of house 66,7% Flat / townhouse / semi-detached house 6,7% Traditional dwelling 14,1% Shacks 8,7% Hostel / room 3,5% Other 0,4% Main source of domestic water1 Running water in dwelling or on site 66,4% Tanker / water pumped to public tap (free or payment required) 12,8% Borehole / rainwater tank 8,5% Flowing water / stream 7,1% Dam / pool / stagnant water 1,2% Well 0,6% Protected / unprotected spring 2,6% Other 0,8% Rural water supply4 Access to tap water in house 13% Communal water taps 55% No formal access to water 32% Main source of energy1 For cooking Electricity from public supply 49,7% Electricity from generator / battery / solar energy 0,2% Gas 4,8% Paraffin 17,2% Wood 22,8% Coal 5,1% Other 0,1% For heating Electricity form public supply 48,5% Electricity from generator / battery / solar energy 0,2% Gas 1,8% Paraffin 13,3% Wood 28,3% Coal 7,6% Other 0,3% For lighting Electricity from public supply 55,3% Electricity from generator / battery / solar energy 0,6% Gas 1,1% Paraffin 15,5% Candles 27,2% Other 0,3% Sanitation facilities1 Flush toilet 53,1% Chemical toilet 1,8% Pit latrine 32,0% Bucket toilet 4,3% No facility 8,9% Refuse disposal1 Removed by local authority 53,4% Communal refuse dump 4,5% Own refuse dump 28,5% None 13,7% Telecommunications1 Telephone in dwelling 31,1% Communal telephone / access to phone at neighbour 20,4% Access to telephone at shop 12,9% None 35,6% Gross National Product (Current value)(Market Prices) 1991 R300 565 000 000 1992 R331 818 000 000 1993 R373 613 000 000 1994 R422 192 000 000 Distribution of Gross National Product, 1994, among Primary (agriculture, mining & related industries) 13,4% Secondary (production & manufacturing) 30,8% Tertiary (service related industries) 55,8% Growth Rate of Gross National Product 1991 -0.1 1992 -2.2 1993 1.1 1994 2.3 Personal Available Income (Current value) 1994 R6 570 per capita per year Personal Savings Rate (as percentage of Personal Disposable Income) 1991 1.9% 1992 4.1% 1993 4.8% 1994 3.6%
ICPD refers to the International Conference on Population and Development held in Cairo in September 1994. It produced a Programme of Action which includes proposals for national and international action. The South African government participated in the process of drawing up this programme and joined 181 countries in consensus on it.
Population or demographic trends refer to changes in relation to three variables: fertility, mortality and migration, as well as how these affect the population size, composition and distribution.
Fertility refers to births. When the document refers to the fertility rate, it is referring to the rate (how quickly or how slowly) at which children are being born over a given period of time. The number of children born to a woman during her life-time is known as the total fertility rate which is often used as a rough indicator of the average number of children a 'typical' mother has.
Mortality refers to deaths. The mortality rate refers to the rate at which people die during a given period. Thus the child or infant mortality rate refers to the death rate in a specific age group during a specific year. The death rate is also measured indirectly as the average expected lifetime (life expectancy at birth).
Migration refers to the movement of people when they change their residence. Internal migration refers to people who move and settle and make new homes within the country, in order to find work or to be with relatives or to flee from violence or for some other reason. International migration refers to people who move their homes into (immigration) or out of (emigration) South Africa.
The overall change in the size of the population in a geographic area, due to the three variables fertility, mortality, and migration, is referred to as population growth. The population growth rate is normally expressed as the percentage increase in the population in a given geographic area during a specific year. Due to the fact that both internal and international migration is not easily measured, migration is sometimes left out of the figures. In such cases, the balance between births and deaths is measured in the form of the rate of natural increase, expressed as a rate per 1000 or percent during a specific time period, usually one year (as in the figure given above).
Many things affect the population variables and therefore the population growth rate. Education, for example, makes a big impact. In the words of the ICPD (Chapter 11.3):
A population policy refers to a policy which puts forward the government's intentions in relation to the fertility, mortality and migrancy rates in the context of achieving sustainable growth and sustainable development, that is, how a government views these trends and what, if anything, it intends to do about them.
IEC refers to information, education and communication.
At the international level, the Programme of Action of the ICDP spells out the mechanisms which are needed to address population-related problems in order to achieve global sustainability and to improve quality of life.
The ICPD Programme reflects a move away from the focus on lowering population numbers, and fertility rates in particular, as a goal in itself (and particularly on the provision of contraception as a means of achieving that goal), toward the goal of improving quality of life. This is a very significant shift, since in the past the international perspective often blamed poverty on overpopulation. It argued for a direct relationship between economic growth and population growth, saying that if economic growth did not keep up with population growth, there would be poverty. Today, as reflected in the ICPD Programme of Action, it is recognised that poverty is the result of a wide range of interacting factors, including the nature of the economy, North-South economic relations, production and consumption patterns, women's position in society, levels of education, the extent of equity in the distribution of resources, and the extent of access to health services. Economic growth is essential, but, because of the inequitable distribution of wealth, does not, in itself, ensure an end to poverty.
In the past, many countries which believed that their poverty was a result of 'overpopulation', responded by providing contraception. International experience has shown, however, that contraception alone does not reduce population numbers, because people's decisions about children are based on a very wide range of socio-economic factors. Access to contraception is not enough to make men or women use it; other aspects of their lives influence their choices about contraception. These include their educational status, their levels of economic independence, their cultural framework, women's overall position in society and the extent to which they are able to make decisions about their lives, their futures and their fertility, the degree of peace and stability in a society, and people's access to quality health care.
This understanding is reflected in the ICPD Programme of Action. In addition, the programme has moved away from the very limited approach to population issues, which focuses only on fertility to assert that both mortality (death) and migration patterns are key factors in society, and must also be taken into account if a society wishes to change its population trends.
The ICPD Programme of Action recognises that the interaction of a very wide range of factors results in an improvement in quality of life and that population trends are only one of these. It argues for the integration of population trends into development planning, monitoring and evaluation, that is, that population trends must be taken into consideration in the process of development planning in all sectors, and development programmes must be evaluated, amongst other things, on the basis of their impact on population trends.
Thus poverty is not caused by population trends alone - they are one factor amongst many that influence poverty and these need to be tackled in an integrated way.
This thinking should form the basis for consideration of population policy in South Africa if South Africa is to keep in line with the international community.
This Green Paper asks questions about most issues covered in the ICPD Programme of Action. There are, however, some issues which are already built into the interim Constitution or the policies of the Government of National Unity, so these are not raised here.
An example is that the ICPD Programme of Action emphasizes the importance of human rights, and that all programmes must be implemented within a framework of internationally accepted human rights. These are already embodied in South Africa's interim Constitution. Of course this does not mean that all activities and programmes in South Africa are consistent with the interim Constitution or human rights, but a start has been made. The question of human rights should nevertheless be considered throughout this Green Paper. It is assumed here that the concept of development is itself an expression of human rights, in that it acknowledges people's rights, on the one hand to the basic necessities of life, and on the other, to taking control over their lives in relation to decision-making about their bodies, and their lives at household, community, provincial and national levels.
Outline of South Africa's pre-election policy and programmes
The Population Development Programme (PDP) was set up in 1984 with the goal of lowering the population growth rate. It was argued that this was necessary because South Africa would run out of resources, specifically water, if the population continued to grow at its present rate. It was also argued that the population growth rate needed to be equal to or lower than the economic growth rate in order for the economy to keep pace with the needs of the people. The PDP acted through an Interdepartmental Committee comprising director-generals. The responsibility of this committee was to ensure that those factors which impact on population trends were given priority. Of particular concern were education, primary health care, economic development, 'manpower' training and housing. Thus socio-economic development, specifically in these areas, was considered the means of achieving a lowering in the population growth rate.
However, the PDP did not work as a national development programme, because it did not fit in with the political priorities of the government of the time. Thus priority was not given to education or housing or any of the other concerns listed above, and the Chief Directorate Population Development (described below) did not have the authority to intervene in the programmes of other government departments. In short, there was no viable policy or mechanism for the effective coordination of an overall development strategy.
In addition to the Interdepartmental Committee, the Chief Directorate Population Development, (which is now in the Department of Welfare), was set up in order to support the work of the Committee. In addition, the Chief Directorate was responsible for setting up population units in all provinces, comprising about twelve people per unit. The aim of the population units was to support the PDP development effort by doing community development, such as helping people in communities to organise themselves, to identify their needs and to access resources to meet their needs, and by building women's participation. They did not, however, have the support of other government departments in their playing a coordinating role, as had been intended. Nor did they have any funds to support their role of promoting development. As a result, in the late 1980s, these units shifted their priorities away from the community development role towards creating awareness about population trends amongst politicians, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), community organisations, students and the public. This is called IEC: information, education and communication. These units identified a number of target groups, including youth, women, and the religious sector, and made information on population trends available to these groups. The primary message in this information was the idea of the small family. The units promoted the idea that 'small families have better futures'. They also promoted the view that people are poor because there are not enough resources in the country for everyone, and that therefore, people should have smaller families. The overall goal of the work of these units was to decrease the population growth rate by getting people to choose to have fewer children.
Each of the 'homelands' also had a population unit, often with a larger staff, in some cases as many as twenty. Not all of these were located in Departments of Health or Welfare; some were in the office of the Chief Minister or in a planning division. Most of these were doing community development work. Some also did IEC programmes.
Now that all population units are being integrated under the provincial governments, a single focus for the population units, if they are to continue, must be identified. It has already been agreed that all community development should be done by the community development units within the Department of Welfare, and in many provinces, personnel in population units doing community development work are being incorporated into community development sections.
One of the reasons for this Green Paper is to decide whether IEC and other work done by the population units is the best way to deal with population questions; the Department of Welfare is reassessing the activities of the population units in the light of the new government, the interim Constitution and the RDP.
Post-election National Context: the Reconstruction and Development Programme
The RDP reflects the national development priorities of the Government of National Unity. These are very similar to those initially identified, but not achieved, by the PDP. They are also similar to those in the ICPD Programme of Action. This raises the question of whether the RDP as it stands is an adequate population statement for South Africa. This Green Paper recognises that the RDP is a short-term strategy. But it is presumed that a long term development strategy with the same broad objectives will continue. The following table sets out the areas of concern of these three programmes.
TABULATED COMPARISON OF FOCAL AREAS OF THREE PROGRAMMES:
The Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP), The International Conference on Population and Development Programme of Action on Population and Development (ICPD), and The Population Development Programme (PDP).
------------------------------------------------------------------- RDP ICPD PROGRAMME PDP ------------------------------------------------------------------- Education Education Education ------------------------------------------------------------------- Human resources Human resource 'Manpower' training development; development Training ------------------------------------------------------------------- Building the Sustained economic Economic economy; growth & development Job creation; sustainable Transport; Energy; development; Telecommunications Change production & consumption patterns ------------------------------------------------------------------- Housing; Urbanisation; Housing; Land reform; Internal & Rural development; Rural development; international Urban development; Urban development migration; (migration) Rural development; Urban development ------------------------------------------------------------------- Health care; Health Primary health care Nutrition; Water & sanitation ------------------------------------------------------------------- Social security; Social services Welfare Social services ------------------------------------------------------------------- Democratising the Human rights; Building capacity state & society; Gender equality & of women, youth & Human rights; empowerment of others to make Tackling racial & women; choices affecting gender inequality; Role of NGOs population growth Involvement of and socio-economic civil society in development; the RDP Tackling gender inequality; Role of stake- holders -------------------------------------------------------------------- Environment Environment Environment -------------------------------------------------------------------- Information for Data collection, Information for performance analysis and evaluation and assessment & dissemination; monitoring and for monitoring & for Research integrating integrated population into planning; development Research planning; Research --------------------------------------------------------------------As can be seen from the table, these three programmes have very similar focuses. The PDP has been overtaken by the RDP, in that promoting development in these terrains is now facilitated through the RDP. The ICDP Programme of Action is also an integrated development programme, again focusing on certain key areas, as indicated in the table. The only factor that marks it as specifically different from the RDP, is its emphasis on the incorporation of an awareness of demographic or population trends, and the impact of these on quality of life. As a result, it gives more emphasis than the RDP does to issues such as migration, its impact, and the need for policies and plans to address it. This is not a difference in goals, nor necessarily a difference in policy; the RDP simply does not spell out the mechanisms for dealing with demographic trends in an explicit manner.
As indicated in the contents of the table, under both the PDP and the ICPD, mortality, migrancy and fertility trends result from a wide range of socio-economic conditions. Thus a wide range of activities, both direct and indirect, need to be undertaken to impact on these population trends, none of which is sufficient in itself to achieve the goal of sustainable development. For example, a lowering of the fertility rate results from an interaction between many factors, including improvements in women's social and economic status, improvements in employment levels, improvements in basic infrastructure such as water supply, sanitation, energy sources and housing, improvements in literacy, education and training levels, and improvements in access to quality primary health care including reproductive health care, (contraception, abortion, infertility services, information and counselling, prevention and treatment of sexually transmitted diseases and AIDS, prevention of cancers, and so on).
Thus a wide range of development activities need to be undertaken to impact on the fertility rate. The same applies to the mortality rate. To some extent this is also the case with migrancy, given that much migrancy results from the absence of basic services and economic options in the place of origin.
The RDP includes all of these development needs in its priorities in order to achieve sustainable development and to improve the quality of life of the population, now and in the future. The meeting of these needs also leads to reductions in the fertility and mortality rates, and could lead to changes in migration patterns.
Questions for the future
The question is whether South Africa should have an explicit policy to take account of population trends (ie. fertility, mortality and migration), in relation to each area of development and to monitor overall development in terms of its impact on these trends. This is not, at the moment, spelt out in the RDP. Also, should South Africa aim to change its population trends? The RDP already aims to lower mortality rates. What about fertility? What about migrancy?
Thus the ICPD Programme of Action, in its Chapter 6 called 'Population Growth and Structure', sets its goals as 'the improvement of quality of life'. It does, however, pay specific attention to those factors which make a more direct impact on fertility and mortality, such as the age at which young people have children, suggesting the need for education and programmes which encourage children to stay at school, for example. It also suggests that priority be given to lowering the infant, child and maternal mortality rates since high rates of infant, child and maternal mortality are factors associated with high fertility.
Fertility, mortality and migrancy rates are not meaningful on their own. They are important in relation to the availability of resources, now and in the future, to meet the needs of the population for a good quality of life. Population trends are also significant for economic development. For example, in countries with a high population growth rate, a relatively large percentage of the population is young. This has important financial implications for providing the necessary services and facilities to the youth in order to develop them into productive citizens. It means that more money must go to providing services and facilities and that less is available for investment in the economy to stimulate economic growth and development. The question of sustained economic growth must therefore also be considered in relation to population trends.
In the words of the ICPD Programme of Action, Chapter 3.5:
The policies and programmes of different ministries do tackle questions of access to resources, production and consumption patterns and the environment, and the overall objectives are presented in the RDP. Should their impact on population trends, and how population trends influence them be spelt out more clearly within the RDP, in order to show how population trends impact on development, just as is done with regard to economic development in the RDP's first White Paper? Should we have specific activities coordinated across departments, to tackle these population trends, in addition to the overall development programme? Should we have specific activities to tackle consumption patterns given the huge disparity between the consumption patterns of the rich and the poor in South Africa? And, if so, how should they be coordinated?
These are the kinds of questions which are asked in this Green Paper, in order to guide both the Ministry of Welfare and Population Development and the Minister without Portfolio about how to take account of population variables in relation to development.
The issue of water in South Africa is a good example of these interactions. Water is in very short supply in South Africa. This is partly because there is little rainfall, but it is also because of bad water management in terms of building and maintaining boreholes, dams and so on, and the inequitable distribution of the water that there is. Most resources are not absolute; access to them depends on levels of technology, and countries can decide how important any resource is and how much money to spend on making it available. So, for example, in the 1995 budget, water supply was allocated more of the budget because the new government wants to make it a priority.
In all countries, rich people consume more than poor people do. Thus the impact of a more affluent section of the population on resources and the environment, even if their numbers are few, may be greater than that of the poorer sections of the population. South Africa is an extreme example of this: while some South Africans, and the industrial sector, use up a lot of South Africa's limited water supply, most South Africans use very little. The recent government decision to charge a higher price for water to those who use most of it, indicates a recognition of the importance of challenging consumption patterns in a context of the need to conserve a resource, in this case water.
Countries can also decide how much money to spend on protecting resources, for example on preventing water and air pollution. They can also develop policy on who bears the cost of this. For example, who pays for pollution: the government, the polluter, or the public? This is where questions of production come in. Production patterns can conserve a resource, but they can also destroy or damage resources with dangerous chemicals, air pollution, or dangerous working conditions amongst other things.
So a government's policy can determine its population's access to resources, but this is also affected by international economic relationships. The value of resources is determined by international markets, and raw materials gain value once they have been used in production, a process known as 'beneficiation'. Thus countries like South Africa could make policies to encourage manufacturing using raw materials, rather than exporting them.
All of these issues impact on the quality of life of the population. They also have a major impact on population trends, just as population trends impact on them.
Sustainable development is possible only if the interactions between consumption and production patterns, resources, and the environment, are systematically managed in order to ensure that improved quality of life does not cause resource depletion and environmental degradation. Each policy and programme put forward in relation to any of these factors should be evaluated in terms of its impact on the others, and on the overall development programme, before it can be agreed upon. This is the key concern of the ICPD Programme of Action. The question of how to tackle these interactions in South Africa remains, however.
OR
OR
The ICPD Programme of Action sets quantitative goals for improving those factors which in turn impact on fertility, mortality and migration. Thus it suggests that countries should aim to improve their levels of literacy, primary health care provision and so on. For example, in Chapter 11.6 on education it says:
Related to this is the question of the extent to which those aspects of sectoral development programmes which impact on population trends, should be written into a single policy showing how the overall development programme aims to tackle population trends.
OR
OR
While goals for policy change and service provision have already been discussed, there is also the option of setting overall quality of life goals which are not achieved by specific services such as education or water supply, but from the interaction between them. Such quality of life goals would be a means of measuring the effectiveness of the overall development programme. Some of these goals could be goals for population trends, that is, for fertility, mortality, migrancy and hence population growth rates, since these are internationally accepted as reflecting overall quality of life.
For example, the ICPD Programme of Action in Chapter 8 sets the goal that:
A very comprehensive chapter of the ICPD Programme of Action is devoted to health, morbidity and mortality. Specific quantitative goals are set for lowering infant, child and maternal mortality levels and for improving life expectancy at birth. These mortality levels are internationally considered as very good indicators of overall quality of life.
A series of actions to achieve these objectives for improving health are recommended in the ICPD programme. These actions refer to sectoral development, in this case in the health sector. While the question above explored the extent to which a development policy should spell out sectoral programmes which will impact on population trends, the question remains whether such a development policy should include indicators (with goals and time-frames) which may be the product of the work of specific sectors, or of the interaction of the achievements in a number of sectors. Infant mortality, for example, reflects not only access to health services, but to good nutrition and education for women, amongst other things.
OR
OR
Migrant labour has made a huge impact on South African society as a whole, and the individuals within it. Historically, South Africa has had policies on migrancy which have kept people out of the cities (influx control) as well as controlling movement between cities, especially with regard to women and the unemployed. This has had a major impact on the population profile in different geographical areas. For example, there are more old people and women in rural areas. It has split families apart and interfered with the social fabric and customs which determine when and how people marry and have children. It also undermined existing social systems for training young people about sexuality and preventing pregnancy. Although influx control no longer exists, the government has to consider these historical patterns of migrancy, and work out whether new policies are needed to encourage new patterns, for example by providing housing not only for male migrants but also for their wives; or by promoting economic development in rural areas so that people are not forced to migrate for economic reasons.
OR
OR
OR
Patterns of immigration to South Africa and emigration from South Africa over the past few decades reflect specific social policies. Probably the most problematic issue in relation to emigration from South Africa was the loss of thousands of citizens who opposed apartheid, including those who were avoiding conscription. While many have now returned, many have not, including doctors, lawyers, engineers, accountants, musicians and writers whose skills were built and paid for by this country, and are not available to South Africa in this period of reconstruction. There is a range of policy options open to the government, including insisting that people who cost the government large amounts of money through their education, either work during this time, after their studies, or pay it back. Should the government as a whole legislate such policy, or is this a matter for individual ministries to consider and decide independently?
The increasing numbers of people who arrive in South Africa in the hope of making a living also pose questions for South Africa. In the past, white immigration was encouraged with tax and housing benefits. What should the new policies be? Does South Africa have a responsibility not to attract skilled people away from their home countries?
OR
In the past, internationally, demographic goals, such as the goal of lowering the fertility rate, have been set to meet the goals of population control programmes, rather than necessarily to improve the quality of life of the population as a whole. While such goals can be useful as measures of quality of life, they can also lead service providers to put the demographic goal above the long-term purpose. For example, in many parts of the world, family planning providers have been given target numbers of people to whom they must give contraception because of the goal of lowering the fertility rate. They have taken advantage of people's lack of education by, for example, giving them a contraceptive injection without their knowledge and have taken advantage of people's poverty by, for example, offering incentives such as money or clothes if they will use contraception. Such service providers have been mainly concerned to meet the target numbers, instead of giving people the information and choices they need to decide if they want to use contraception. Thus the setting of goals for fertility reduction can lead to human rights abuses. It may therefore be better to focus on those factors which lead to a lowering of the fertility rate, as discussed above, like literacy levels, levels of access to and usage of health care services, levels of employment, and others. On the other hand, the lowering of the fertility rate is certainly a sign of improved quality of life and it can therefore be argued that it is an important indicator of the effectiveness of the overall development programme.
Some people feel that the fertility rate should be raised. There are many different reasons people may have for this view. For example, many people believe that children are a gift from God, and people should therefore have as many as come; they are the basis of society. Others believe that because South Africa has lost so many young people through the war over the last decade, and because of the high rate of deaths of children, people should be encouraged to have more children.
OR
OR
OR
OR
The population growth rate is the result of the interaction between migrancy patterns, and mortality and fertility rates. Thus, to oversimplify the process: if the government wants to increase the population growth rate, it needs to encourage, through policies and programmes, more births and immigration, while encouraging a decrease in the death rate and in emigration from South Africa. If, on the other hand, the government wants to lower the population growth rate, then it needs to encourage, through policies and programmes, fewer births and less immigration. In fact, some of these issues are already resolved through the RDP and other government policies. Because of the moral obligation to do so, South Africa will discourage through all possible policies and programmes, in all relevant ministries and departments, unnecessary and early deaths. Apart from this, the RDP does focus on all major development sectors which contribute to lowering fertility. New policies on internal and international migration are being considered at the moment.
The question of using population information in order to be able to plan effective programmes is also under consideration, and mechanisms for this are discussed below.
Thus, it is clear that South Africa already has (or is in the process of developing) policies and programmes which together can be described as a 'population policy'. However, they are not spelt out as such. In particular, the linkages between each sectoral policy and the fertility, mortality and migration rates are not made explicit. Is this necessary? Would it be helpful to formally articulate all of these various policies and programmes as the means through which South Africa intends to take account of and to influence population trends through its development planning and programmes?
OR
OR
The process whereby policy-makers and planners take account of population trends in the process of development policy making and planning is what is meant by the concept of 'integrating population into development'. This process should also involve planners investigating the impact of their programmes on population trends, by asking themselves whether housing, education or health programmes have influenced the fertility, mortality or migrancy rates. For example, the decision to provide free health care to pregnant women should be measured, amongst other things, in terms of its impact on maternal mortality. Do less women die in childbirth now that there are free health services?
To be able to do this, however, all policy makers and planners need both the demographic or population data and information, and the capacity to monitor and interpret it for their needs.
OR
OR
OR
OR
Women's empowerment is an essential component of any effective development policy whether or not it explicitly takes account of population trends. The key challenge is to both effect changes within each sector and create an overall improvement in women's social, economic and political position in society. The ICPD Programme of Action (Chapter 4) focuses specifically on a range of government activities to improve women's status. These activities include:
OR
OR
OR
OR
OR
OR
Much of the focus of the ICPD Programme of Action is on women's empowerment. It does, however, in Chapter 4C, also discuss men's responsibilities and participation. It notes that:
OR
AND / OR
AND / OR
This Green Paper explores the question of who should be responsible for making population information available to the public. The question of making population information available to government is covered in the section above which explores the question of providing information to government for planning purposes should it need factual information on population trends, and assistance in the interpretation of this information as it relates to its specific programmes, as well as monitoring the impact of its programmes on population trends.
The RDP (Base document 5.174) notes the need for:
At the moment, each department provides information with regard to its own services. The South African Communication Services has taken responsibility for information about people's new rights as well as about the new structures of government and how people can access government resources, including those of the RDP.
The ICPD programme identifies much of this information as 'population information, education and communication' (IEC) because it impacts in one way or another on population trends. Population information includes the generation and dissemination of general and technical information of important developments regarding the population situation and related policies. Population communication is a planned dialogue process, aimed at motivating people to adopt alternative attitudes or behaviour or to utilise existing services. Population education refers to the process of facilitating learning with a view to enabling audiences to make rational and informed decisions about their behaviour in relation to mortality, fertility and migrancy in the long term.
This Green Paper needs to assess what IEC is needed by the public with regard to population issues, and who should provide it. In particular, should the existing population units continue to be responsible for the provision of certain 'information, education and communication' to the public?
The ICDP view on the significance of communication
The ICDP Programme of Action emphasises that for the provision of IEC to be effective, a range of communication channels must be employed, including the interpersonal, the mass media, and traditional folk arts, and that this information should be accessible to all levels of society and all groups within it. These communication activities need to be coordinated and linked to the relevant policies and services to enhance their use.
According to the ICDP programme, effective IEC on matters of population can facilitate informed, free and responsible decision-making by individuals with regard to health, sexual and reproductive behaviour, family life, and patterns of production, consumption and resource usage. It can also create a positive environment within which a society can address and respond to the challenges of migration.
The role of the government in providing IEC to the public
Thus, in the view of the ICPD, all stakeholders in society have a responsibility to communicate on development and population- related matters. In addition, such IEC should be linked to, and complement, development and population policies, strategies and services. With regard to the government's role in IEC on development and population issues, there are two important questions. Where in government should the IEC function be located? And to what extent should the information provided have been interpreted by government, that is, should the government be able to offer its own interpretations of such information?
Currently, population units provide IEC on the relationship between population trends and poverty, and on the small-family norm. The units are now developing new messages in the light of the policies of the Government of National Unity. In the past, some population units offered information on issues which, they say, would be more appropriately dealt with by other departments. The Department of Education, for example, should be responsible for providing education in schools on population trends as well as life-skills, career guidance, sexuality education and so on; and the Department of Health should provide IEC on the importance of immunisation, the value of using contraception, how to prevent sexually transmitted disease and so on. Some units offered information to women about their rights, which is also the responsibility of the community development officials in the Department of Welfare. Some units offered population information and interpretation, which function is not the responsibility of any other government department.
The role of civil society in providing IEC to the public
While the ICPD view argues that the government has a key role in IEC, it also notes the importance of NGOs, communities and others in the distribution of information. It can, however, be argued that it is not the role of the government at all to communicate about matters related to such personal decision-making. Some argue that this is specifically the role of custom and religion. Others argue that this is the role of the media, and it is for this reason that it is important that all communities have access to the media. When the government takes on the role of interpreting information for the public, the information can easily become government propaganda. Given the power of government, it is essential to limit its role in disseminating and interpreting information of this nature.
OR
OR
OR
OR
OR
OR
OR
OR
OR
International experience with population units
In some countries national population councils have been established at cabinet level, with population units functioning as coordinating and operational bodies directly under these councils. In other countries population units or divisions have been created in planning institutions such as the Ministry of Planning. Population units have also been established in sectoral ministries or in regional development planning bodies. The establishment of population planning units, is a significant step in the process of formulating, implementing and evaluating population-related policies, and examining the actual and potential effects of socio-economic policies on population trends, and vice verse. Population units facilitate the incorporation of population factors into development planning at national and regional levels. Population units typically house population reference materials and can be used to organize seminars, and promote apprenticeships and training. They also promote interaction among economists and demographers, thus helping to enrich and broaden development perspectives.
Whatever the institutional model, it is clear that for the effective integration of development and population planning to take place, there must be a network of local capabilities in data collection, research and analysis on development and population interrelationships, policy formulation and programme development, and development and population planning.
Forms of population units
Population units take different forms in different countries, for example:
Population planning units are expected to fulfil the following functions:
This Green Paper has explored the question of institutionalising certain aspects of policy and programme implementation such as gathering population data and using it for monitoring purposes, promoting women's empowerment and carrying out IEC programmes. This section considers this question in relation to the implementation of the policy as a whole.
OR
OR
OR
In relation to population issues, one component of the PDP was the Council for Population Development which was set up in 1986. It was not intended as a representative body, but rather as a body of experts from a wide range of sectors, such as trade, industry, agriculture, women's organisations and academia. The aim of the Council was to advise the Minister for Population Development on population issues.
There are also two regional population forums, one in the Eastern Cape and one in the Western Cape. Both comprise community based organisations, NGOs, and other interested parties.
OR
Return to GNU Home Page