South Africa is one of the most unequal countries in the world when it comes to income.
The reason for this is:
- racial policies of the apartheid government before 1994 that out resources into the hands of very few people
- high youth unemployment
- more lower wage jobs than higher wage jobs
The result of this is that South Africa's Gini Coefficient has remained high for a long time and shows little sign of dropping.
The Gini Coefficient is an economic measure of inequality and it is measured in percentage. The higher it is, the more unequal the income in a country is.
As seen on the graph, South Africa's inequality is quite significant as the Gini coefficient is quite high.
In conclusion, South Africa is one of the most unequal countries on the planet and so the government has much to do to change this.
