This book, dealing with social policy in Southern Africa, offers a comprehensive collection of possible social policy-based interventions in Southern Africa’s socio-economic and development realities, starting with the history or background to existing social policies and ultimately proposing the kinds of social policies that are ideal for Southern African countries.

Southern Africa as a sub-region has a political history and socio-economic profile that allows a focused study of the sub-region, particularly in relation socio-economic transformation. The sub-region has been shaped by complex experiences of the various groups over millennia and the borders are a reflection of events of the colonial era which lasted well into the 20th century. Southern African countries have struggled with socio-economic development. The lack of comprehensive social policies in the sub-region is among the chief reasons for poor socio-economic development outcomes in the sub-region with progress hindered by widespread poverty, rising inequality, massive youth unemployment, female marginalisation, and deficits in domestic productivity, competitiveness, value addition, infrastructure and development planning.

Demonstrating how social policy can confront the basic challenges of development in agriculture and the informal sector and showing both the theoretical and practical applicability of social policy in Southern Africa, particularly with regard to responding to contemporary regional challenges such as climate change, war and conflict, and pandemics, this book is necessary reading for all scholars and students of African politics, social policy and socio-economic development broadly.