Publications

Household Affordability Index

The Household Affordability Index is produced by the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice & Dignity Group, a Civil Society initiative that focuses on issues of economic justice, the low-wage regime and the increasing household affordability and food price crisis, with its attendant nutritional deficiencies, health and developmental consequences, and the lack of imaginative policy and systemic responses to deal with this crisis. The Household Food Basket has been designed together with women living on low incomes in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban, Pietermaritzburg, Mtubatuba (in Northern KwaZulu-Natal), and Springbok (in the Northern Cape). It includes the foods and the volumes of these foods which women living in a family of seven members (an average low-income household size) tell us they typically try and secure each month. Food prices are tracked directly by women data collectors off the shelves of 47 supermarkets and 32 butcheries. The selection of supermarkets and food brands is dynamic and subjective. Women are smart and savvy shoppers and shop around for bargains. This specific methodology provides an accurate cost of a monthly household food basket, as purchased by women living on low incomes.

Using Public Space in the Global South

Public space only comes alive when it is used. This seems obvious, but using public space in South African cities is to come up against a long history linking back to Apartheid spatial planning. This legacy of control permeates almost every aspect of public space and is highly visible across many areas of urban life. This research brief as part of the Global South Public Space Platform looks across the parallel contexts of South Africa and Colombia pointing to alternative approaches to create dynamic and resilient cities.

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Koeberg Long Term Operation Safety Report

In July 2022, Eskom submitted a Safety Case Report (SCR) on the Koberg Nuclear Power Station to South Africa’s National Nuclear Regulator (NNR), as part of the efforts to extend Koberg’s lifetime. Unfortunately, Eskom refused to make the SCR public, despite its significance to public interest. In January 2023, a heavily redacted version was released to the public, and in June 2023, following court action, the report was released in full. This publication compares the various versions of the SCR with the intention of highlighting what information Eskom sought to conceal.

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