SA government does not impress in its control of cost of living.
Less than four in every ten (38%) adult South Africans believe that the government is doing “very
well” or “fairly well” in its efforts to control the cost of living in the country.
This was one of the important findings from the Ipsos “Pulse of the People” poll of 3 500 adult South
Africans conducted from 26 October to 7 December 2011. In the poll, randomly chosen
respondents were asked whether they thought the government was performing very well, fairly well,
not really well or not at all well in various policy areas – including “Controlling the cost of living”.
To explore the concerns of South Africans about the cost of living in the country, Ipsos probed ten
items that households typically would spend money on. The question was: “How easy or difficult is it
for you and your family to afford the following? Is it very easy, easy, difficult or very difficult to
afford….” . The following items were included: food, healthcare, housing, education, savings for
retirement, electricity, water, petrol, wood/coal/gas and transport. If the household did not make use
of one of these items, it was recorded as “not applicable”.
According to the chart below, more than half of South Africans find these basic items either difficult
or very difficult to afford. The high cost of petrol is posing a problem – it is also having a spin-off
effect on the cost of transport.
SA government does not impress in its control of cost of living.
It is clear from this picture that very few South Africans are saving for their retirement. The money
available in most households is not enough to afford necessities and saving is probably seen as a
luxury that most people can ill afford.
It is difficult or very difficult for most South Africans to afford necessities:
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
58
41
75
66
59
63
55
40
32
57
60
63
48
41
35
41
33
16
12
21
Very easy/easy
Difficult/very difficult
When looking at the results for working South Africans only, the pattern looks very similar, although
higher proportions have indicated that they can afford most items, especially food, healthcare,
housing and education, the price of petrol is still an issue, while just less than a quarter (23%) are
saying that they find it easy or very easy to make provision for retirement.
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SA government does not impress in its control of cost of living.
Working South Africans are slightly better off:
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
72
52 47
58
52
47
40
48
59
48
39
62
58
49
49
44
23
37
17
22
Very easy/easy
Difficult/very difficult
Very easy/easy
For young people from 18-24 years old, the cost of living is a grave concern – with only about four in
every ten indicating that they find it easy or very easy to afford food, healthcare, education,
electricity and water. A third can afford housing and transport and those who do use wood/coal or
gas for cooking or heating find it expensive. The cost of petrol is still a huge issue, while savings for
retirement are very low on the list of necessities.
Young people are struggling to afford necessities:
80
59
60
40
20
0
40
72
67
57
56
42
32
60
57
58
50
43
38
63
41
34
13
11
20
Very easy/easy
Difficult/very difficult
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SA government does not impress in its control of cost of living.
In an international survey, also released today, South Africans participating have indicated that they
are not very optimistic about the economic growth in the country for the next six months – only a
quarter (26%) of the rather affluent group who participated in an online survey indicated that they
expect the regional economy to be stronger a few months from now. However, when looking at their
evaluation of the current situation, opinions in South Africa have shown the greatest improvement.
Ends
Technical aspects

Fieldwork was carried out from 26 October to 7 December 2011 by trained and experienced
fieldworkers

Face-to-face in-home interviews were conducted with a randomly chosen sample of 3 500
South Africans, 16 years and older, in the language chosen by the respondent

The results were weighted and projected to the universe (i.e. adult South Africans).

Results of South Africans of voting age (i.e. 18+) were filtered out – this press release is based
on the views of possible voters

The margin of error of the is 1,67%
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SA government does not impress in its control of cost of living.
About Ipsos: The Home of Researchers
Ipsos is an innovative, entrepreneurial, client-focused organisation, providing research services to
clients on a global basis. We set ourselves high standards and aim to work collaboratively in
partnership with our teams in order to service our clients most effectively.
Ipsos recently acquired Synovate globally.
Ipsos is proud to be the only global market research company that is still controlled and operated by
market researchers. We aim to remain the natural home for intellectually curious and passionate
researchers.
Our goal is simple: to be our clients' preferred research partners in our areas of specialisation,
based on BQC (Better, Quicker, Cheaper) methodologies and processes. We want our clients to be
proud and pleased to work with us - and we want each one of us to be proud and pleased to offer
our clients high quality standards, efficiency and intelligence.
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