Children Count - Abantwana Babalulekile                                                               Click to Print This Page

Most data about the social and economic situation of South Africans don't focus on children but instead only count households. This obscures for example the fact that poorer families tend to be larger, or that children are disproportionately represented in rural areas. This data is therefore of limited use for individuals or organisations interested in children's rights and their well-being. It was for this reason that the Children's Institute in 2005 launched the data-based advocacy project called Children Count - Abantwana Babalulekile (which means 'children are important' in isiXhosa).

This project represents child-centred data on basic demographics and care arrangements for children as well as on the socio-economic rights areas of education, health (including HIV/AIDS), housing, nutrition, social assistance, and water. As the project grows and data is included with the release of new national surveys, we will be able to track changes over time in the conditions of children and their access to services.

A number of data sources are being used. Some are from administrative databases used by government departments to monitor the services that they deliver, including data from the Departments of Health, Education and Social Development. Some of the data on HIV/AIDS are from the ASSA model, a statistical model developed by the Actuarial Society of South Africa, which uses multiple data sources in deriving estimates of the incidence of HIV/AIDS and treatment needs. The majority of indicators have however been developed for the first time using Statistics South Africa's General Household Survey data, which was analysed by Debbie Budlender from the Centre for Actuarial Research at the University of Cape Town.

While there has been improved access to water and sanitation, and while school enrolment is very high in South Africa, the data points to a number of areas that still require substantial improvements:

  • One child in every 10 is underweight.
  • The country has a high infant mortality rate, reflecting poor socio-economic conditions and problems related to access to perinatal care and maternal health.
  • Fifty-nine out of every 1,000 children die within a year of their birth, and 95 out of every 1,000 die before they turn five.
  • Of those children who do not live to their fifth birthday, 40% die as a direct consequence of HIV/AIDS.
  • As at June 2006, more than five million children live in overcrowded houses, and approximately 2.6 million children live in informal dwellings and backyard shacks on the periphery of cities and towns.
  • In the Eastern Cape province alone, nearly 2.2 million children live in areas where there is no proper water supply, or where they have to fetch water from rivers or distant communal taps.
  • Despite the high school enrolment rate, there is evidence that attendance is lower and many children are not enrolled at an age-appropriate level.
  • The gradual reduction in the learner-to-educator ratio at schools is positive; however, the ratio remains high for public schools, especially at a primary school level.
  • Many children travel long distances or walk for a long time (more than 30 minutes) to get to schools.
What is striking in many of these indicators is the great disparities between the provinces. Poorer and rural provinces are home to more children who are poorer and less well serviced in terms of clinics and schools, housing and basic services. And it is clear from every indicator that the legacy of apartheid has bequeathed heavy burdens of poverty and inequitable access to assets and services to the majority of black African children.

The Children Count - Abantwana Babalulekile Project also produces fact sheets and trend monitors on the various indicators that it tracks. The latest data for the various indicators are also published in the Children's Institute's annual review on the situation of South Africa's children, titled the South African Child Gauge.

These publications and the indicators on the website will provide benchmarks against which to track improvements in the living conditions of South Africa’s children. The project aims to make these useful information resources available in particular to those tasked with developing policy, laws and programmes that shape the lives of children in South Africa.

Related publications


Children Count - Abantwana Babalulekile web site click here

South African Child Gauge 2006 click here
Monson J, Hall K, Smith C & Shung-King M (eds) 2005

Facts about the up-take of the Child Support Grant (January 2006) click here
Leatt A 2006
Children Count - Abantwana Babalulekile Fact Sheet No. 3 of 2006

Facts about children and housing in South Africa (2006) click here
Hall K 2006
Children Count - Abantwana Babalulekile Fact Sheet No. 2 of 2006

Facts about child deaths in South Africa (2006) click here
Abrahams K 2006
Children Count - Abantwana Babalulekile Fact Sheet No. 1 of 2006

South African Child Gauge 2005 click here
Jacobs M, Shung-King M & Smith C (eds) 2005
Children's Institute, University of Cape Town

Rapid Assessment: The situation of children in South Africa click here
Berry L & Guthrie T November 2003

Last updated: 22 November 2007
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