as2_techbrief5_final

Almost two decades after the end of apartheid, inequality still shapes every facet of life in South Africa. A child in the poorest 20% of households is 17 times more likely to experience hunger than a child in the richest 20% of households (South African Human Rights Commission, UNICEF, 2011). In 2010, 35% of all children lived below the ultra-poverty line (R290 per month1); this rises to 60% of all children who lived below the lower poverty line (R575 per month) (Hall, 2012). South Africa is also home to the highest number of people living with HIV/AIDS—over 5.6 million (UNAIDS, 2012). The HIV/AIDS crisis has weakened family structures and accelerated the demand for social services. In 2010, there were more than 1.5 million maternal and double orphans,2 and approximately 90,000 children in child-only households (Meintjes and Hall, 2012).