In the face of unpredictable upheavals, considerable challenges and a divisive history, ordinary South Africans are building a nation together by giving to each other, rich to poor, poor to poor, and across all races and cultures. We are a remarkable nation of givers.
A new book entitled “giving & solidarity”, edited by Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the University of Johannesburg Adam Habib and Discipline Chair of Geography at the University of KwaZulu Natal Brij Maharaj, reveals the extent of the strength of South Africa’s moral fabric.
The book unpacks the immense contribution non-state stakeholders have made to the fight against poverty, an area of nation building that is primarily the domain of the state.
While many of us may be aware that Corporate Social Investment has grown remarkably in this country, few may know that businesses in South Africa spend approximately R5 billion per annum on social causes.
What is even more astounding is the fact that regular citizens give roughly R12 billion per annum from their pockets to help others.
| Giving in South Africa |
|
| Corporates | R 5 billion |
|
Individuals |
R 12 billion |
| State (Social Grants) | R 80 billion |
These results emerged from a national survey on social giving. Three thousand respondents, representative of South Africans from all walks of life, were asked to comment on their social contributions in the month preceding their interviews.
The results showed that an overwhelming 93% of respondents had given money, goods or time to a cause, organisation or an individual in the month prior to being interviewed.
Extrapolated for national figures, total giving in South Africa therefore amounts to R921 288 100, 52 million hours and a plethora of goods (in the form of food, drinks, blankets, clothes, educational materials and even building materials) given to the poor every month!
The survey revealed some interesting facts about the dynamics of giving in South Africa:
- Giving is not the domain of the rich. Poor households generally give less money but more often and significantly more of their time to the poor.
- Giving to non-household family members accounts for more than half of all giving in African and Indian families.
- 55% of all survey respondents felt that paying for the upkeep of relative’s children was not a form of giving, but a duty.
- 80% of respondents gave their money to religious institutions, making faith based philanthropy the single largest component of South African giving. (However, as the authors show, faith based organisations are reluctant to open up their books, measuring whether this money is used directly for social causes or the reproduction of the particular religion, remains questionable.)
While overwhelmingly positive, the survey was essentially aimed at answering a crucial question:
“Is giving an unavoidable product of the particular economic growth path chosen by the ruling party after 1994, which has seen levels of poverty (at best) remain static and has thus forced people into reciprocal giving as a survival strategy? or Does giving reflect deeper, more positive bonds and ties that bind the population together in the face of poverty now, as it did before in the face of colonialism and apartheid?”
In answering this question, it is interesting to look how respondents answered questions regarding their reasons for giving. When asked “What do you think is the most deserving cause that you would support if you could?” responses were dominated by three categories: children/youth, HIV/Aids and ‘the poor’.
When asked to answer the open ended question “I give because…”, 68% percent of respondents revealed strong feelings of human solidarity saying they gave because others had nothing or were suffering or that the poor deserved something from them.
When asked whether they agreed with the statement “Government must help the poor not me,” 61% said no.
And when asked whether they agreed with the statement: ‘Helping the poor is widely regarded as an important part of building the new South Africa’, 93% said yes.
Defining poverty is a contentious exercise due to the relative nature of the concept. Looking at the past 14 years of democracy, some say there have been major advancements in the fight against poverty, while some unequivocally disagree. But two things are for sure:
- Giving by ordinary South Africans to assist the poor is widespread
- State Social Grants have grown from R10 billion in 1994 covering 2 million people, mostly pensioners, to R80 billion covering 12.3 million people, mostly children.
There is even evidence to suggest that our Social Grant system, far from creating “dependency”, has encouraged entrepreneurialism.
In his chapter on Resource flows in poor communities, Mandla Seleoane of the Tshwane University of Technology defines poverty as ‘the lack of access to the necessities of life in the form of food, clothing and shelter in such a manner that ones life becomes precarious.’
Based on this definition, it is fair to say that the general South African public, through Rands and Cents, food and blankets, time and tithes, have helped our fellow citizens live slightly less precarious existences, R12 billion worth!
The strong moral fabric that underpins our society is powerful but can only do so much to ensure that we as a country meet the challenges posed by poverty. As the authors of “giving & solidarity” suggest, all that remains is an integrated approach within a responsive national political and economic policy to secure a future that is free of inequality and underdevelopment.
Giving is part of our fabric, part of our healing, part of our willingness to build a caring nation.
By Lindy Mtongana
