April 2019 Household Affordability Index

The Household Affordability Index aims to provide a lens into the affordability crisis facing households living on low incomes by looking at wage and social grant levels and the costs of goods and services reasonably expected to be covered by this low income. It further provides a measure of inflation as experienced by households living on low incomes. The Index is published by the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity Group (PEJDG), and is designed through conversation with women living on low incomes in Pietermaritzburg.

While the research conversations, data collection and analysis are located in Pietermaritzburg, the Household Affordability Index may provide a reasonable sense of the affordability crisis and inflationary pressures for working class households across South Africa. The Household Affordability Index was launched in June 2018 and is released monthly.