Poverty remains a big challenge around the world. Africa our continent, is categorised as world's poorest.

It's unfortunate. However, we should remember that there has been good progress in the fight against global poverty over the past 33 years. According to the World Bank, the global poverty rate was 38% in 1990. By 2019 the global poverty rate was 9%. However, Africa has lagged behind in the fight against poverty, data shows. We are struggling to drastically reduce poverty in Africa.

In South Africa, half of the population is categorised as poor, according to Statistics South Africa (Stats SA). Eastern Cape and Limpopo are South Africa's poorest provinces. What is perplexing to me, is that these two poorest provinces have been voting for the African National Congress (ANC) since democracy began in 1994. They don’t want to change their vote. The questions that I'm struggling to answer are: Why do the people of Limpopo and Eastern Cape keep voting for the ANC? Haven't they seen that the ANC has failed them? It’s baffling.

Black South Africans remain the most affected by poverty in South Africa. According to the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC), 64% of black South Africans live in poverty. The white poverty rate is 1%, while the Indian poverty rate is 6%, and the Coloured poverty rate is 41%.

According to Pali Lehohla, the former Statistician General who served as head of Stats SA under Zuma and Mbeki presidencies, the drivers of poverty in South Africa are unemployment and lack of education.

Pali makes a good point on education, because the unemployment rate is lower amongst South Africa’s graduates. The 2024 second quarter unemployment data shows that the unemployment rate amongst South African graduates is 10%, while the unemployment rate amongst those with less than a matric qualification is 39%. It’s 36% amongst those with only a matric qualification.

So, education matters, pay no attention to South African left-wing demagogues who tell you otherwise.

Now let’s look at South Africa’s unemployment rate by race. Black unemployment is 47%. Coloured unemployment is 32%. Indian unemployment is 22%. The white population has the lowest unemployment rate of 10%. This is the 2024 second quarter unemployment data published by Stats SA.

Due to the high rate of unemployment and lack of education, inequality is at a staggering level in South Africa. The Gini coefficient is 0.63, which is the highest in the world.

Much talk in South Africa, is still about racial inequality. However, the fact is that inequality amongst blacks is now the biggest in South Africa.

What will help black South Africans to catch up?

The answer to this question is simple, and it's not government welfare that will help black South Africans. We must focus on addressing the drivers of poverty, as pronounced by Lehohla. Firstly, competitive, high quality education must be the focus for black South Africans.

The state of public education in our townships and rural areas remains dire. These are places where a lot of work must be done and where the government fails dismally. Hardworking teachers in public schools will attest to this.

More than 81% of grade four learners cannot read for meaning, and it's black children. In my book Lessons from Past Heroes, I argue that education will be key in the efforts to fight poverty and in uplifting black South Africans.

Secondly, stronger job creation is critical in reducing black poverty. The poor are unemployed, and the recent numbers on unemployment rates are saddening.

My view is that we must create as many jobs as possible, even if some of these jobs are at a low wage. Low wage jobs can be a start for many South Africans. Staying at home without a job is more disastrous to the unemployed and the entire society. Hence, I have been opposed to South Africa's highly regulated labour market for a long time.

A highly regulated labour market with politically charged labour unions shaping public policy disadvantages the poor black South Africans.

In his great article published on Business Day this past week, Jabulani Sikhakhane argued that nobody speaks for the unemployed in South Africa. The unemployed remain invisible and voiceless with no representation, Jabulani wrote. These are black people, voiceless and unable to have a meaningful say in labour market affairs.

The socioeconomic challenges of black South Africans have nothing to do with “white monopoly capital”. To perpetuate the notion that it's “white monopoly capital” holding black people back is ludicrous.

White-founded businesses are a positive for South Africa. They pay taxes, and it's those taxes that help finance government's development programs. Many black South Africans are employed in these white-founded businesses, and that is a good thing for our country.

And then there is the “we want our land back” ideology. The argument that black people account for the majority of the poor because they do not own land lacks economic sense.

The South African Institute of Race Relations (SAIRR) has done surveys on what matters the most to South Africans. Land is not on top in the priority list. People want jobs, and crime drastically reduced in their communities.

In recent years, the government has had difficulties in transferring the farmland it had bought to black people. Since the restitution process began in the 1990s, more than 90% of land claimants have opted for cash compensation not land.

What we can conclude from these facts on land is that South Africans don't see land as a path to prosperity. That makes economic sense because the land needs to be productive for it to create wealth, otherwise, it's completely useless, and the owners will remain trapped in poverty. All these countries in Sub Saharan Africa have land, yet they are dirt poor. The GDP per capita of the poorest country, South Sudan, is about $500.

Stronger families are critical for economic development. Blacks are left behind when it comes to the nuclear family. 68% of South Africa’s black children are not growing up with their fathers, according to Stats SA. That is disastrous.

Children growing up in fatherless homes are more likely to become criminals, drop out of school, girls more likely to become pregnant in their teens, boys more likely to end up in prison. Also, two parents-headed households tend to have higher incomes than single parent headed households.

Brookings Institution’s research shows that the effective way to address poverty is work, education, marriage, and family size.

Marriage and two parents-headed households must be promoted in South Africa’s black communities if the goal is to uplift the black poor.

A stronger savings and investment culture also needs to be cultivated amongst black South Africans. So long these are not encouraged, black South Africans will remain outclassed by other racial groups.

Entrepreneurship is critical and must be cultivated in the black community. Both the government and the private sector can and must invest in this.

It is time we get serious about our problems. It troubles me to see demagogues in politics not addressing the real problems faced by black South Africans. We deserve better.

Phumlani M. Majozi is author of a new book “Lessons from Past Heroes” and a macroeconomist and political analyst. He’s the host of The Phumlani Majozi Show on YouTube. Subscribe to his show here: Phumlani M. Majozi - YouTube.