The importance of formal education in socioeconomic development is an established fact. Formal education leads to better living standards through improved productivity, health and earnings. However, opportunities to acquire quality education are a function of a country's economic policy. This study inquires into the capacity ofthe South African macroeconomic strategy of Growth, Employment and Redistribution( GEAR) to afford people the opportunities to get quality education. The study shows close linkages between GEAR and structural adjustment programmes( SAPs). The study argues that SAPs and thus GEAR tend to have negative impact on the poor as social spending is reduced and education gets affected. This study concludes that GEAR is likely to impoverish the public formal education system, particularly in poorer communities. / Development Studies / M. Admin. (Development Administration)

Various studies have found that South Africa’s high unemployment rate contributes to poverty, inequality, crime and ill-health. Furthermore, South African low to middle-income households are characterised by a high debt to income ratio which contributes to low or negative savings rates. This has left many households vulnerable to financials risk and shocks. This research examined how households with low-income or no income manage to cope on a daily basis. The research adopted an auto ethnography method. During the initial phase of the fieldwork the researcher observed participants over a period of more than a year in the provinces of Limpopo and Gauteng, this was followed by in-depth interviews with households selected using purposive and snowballing sampling. The results revealed that the most common coping strategies used by participants’ to deal with financial risks and shocks are borrowing from peers (family, friends and neighbours) and high-risk lenders i.e. mashonisas and accessing social support networks. Other strategies employed included pawning and selling of assets as well as employers’ loans. It was interesting to note that unlike studies in other countries, skipping meals were not a common coping strategy, and this could mainly be ascribed to the social support networks (Ubuntu) that were found in the communities studied. Future research is recommended on the impact of family financial obligations on households’ financial well-being. / Taxation / M. Phil. (Accounting Sciences)

The importance of formal education in socioeconomic development is an established fact. Formal education leads to better living standards through improved productivity, health and earnings. However, opportunities to acquire quality education are a function of a country's economic policy. This study inquires into the capacity ofthe South African macroeconomic strategy of Growth, Employment and Redistribution( GEAR) to afford people the opportunities to get quality education. The study shows close linkages between GEAR and structural adjustment programmes( SAPs). The study argues that SAPs and thus GEAR tend to have negative impact on the poor as social spending is reduced and education gets affected. This study concludes that GEAR is likely to impoverish the public formal education system, particularly in poorer communities. / Development Studies / M. Admin. (Development Administration)