This is an independent report produced by a team of international and national consultants supported by the international Poverty Centre in Brasilia (IPC). Initial support for this report was provided by the Poverty Group of the United Nations Development Programme in New York. This Report is part of a wider global research programme encompassing several other countires. The views in this report are the authors' and not necessarily IPC's. However, the IPC regards this report as an important contribution to the debate on economic policies and employment programmes in South Africa as well as in other countries in Africa.