Africa’s Social Policy Trajectories The Case of South Africa, Mauritius and Zambia

Abstract

The outbreak of the coronavirus disease in 2019 (COVID-19) compelled governments to implement strict
measures to curb the rapid transmission of the deadly virus. These preliminary epidemiological measures were
composed mainly of non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) such as stringent national lockdowns; the closure
of workplaces, schools and all public places; a ban on local, regional and international travel; and social distancing
and ‘stay at home’ policies that hit hard as hundreds of millions lost their jobs, livelihoods and incomes. Whilst
trying to curb the loss of life from the pandemic, governments were called to respond to the emerging livelihoods
crises. The speed and efficiency of these public responses depended largely on the depth and breadth of social
policies that existed prior to the pandemic. The pandemic created an opportune moment to reflect on dominant
frameworks that have guided economic and social policies in the last few decades, particularly the residual social
policies focused on minimalist means-tested public support which left many countries completely unprepared for
crises of the magnitude induced by the COVID-19 pandemic. In terms of the interface between gender and the
social policy, systems that did not address gender were unlikely to address it in times of crisis; the result was
continued negative implications for women relative to men.