Orphans of the AIDS epidemic? The extent, nature and circumstances of child-headed households in South Africa

Helen Meintjes · Katharine Hall · Double-Hugh Marera · Andrew Boulle

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Poverty, Education, and Child Welfare Family Dynamics and Relationships HIV/AIDS Impact and Responses

Abstract

There is widespread concern that the number of children living in "child-headed households" is rapidly increasing as a result of AIDS-related adult mortality in much of sub-Saharan Africa. Based on analyses of data from several representative national surveys over the period 2000-2007, this paper examines the extent to which this is the case in South Africa. It explores trends in the number of children living in child-only households and characterises these children relative to children living in households with adults (mixed-generation households). The findings indicate that the proportion of child-only households is relatively small (0.47% in 2006) and does not appear to be increasing. In addition, the vast majority (92.1%) of children resident in child-only households have a living parent. The findings raise critical questions about the circumstances leading to the formation of child-only households and highlight that they cannot for the main part be ascribed to HIV orphaning. Nonetheless, the number of children living in this household form is not insignificant, and their circumstances, when compared with children in mixed-generation households, indicate a range of challenges, including greater economic vulnerability and inadequate service access. We argue that a solitary focus on the HIV epidemic and its related orphaning as the cause of child-only households masks other important issues for consideration in addressing their needs, and risks the development of inappropriate policies, programmes and interventions.

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References

1992Health transition review 2009Social Development Issues 2004Orphanhood and childcare patterns in sub-Saharan Africa 2000The capacity of the extended family safety net for orphans in Africa 2003Changing patterns of orphan care due to the HIV epidemic in western Kenya 2006Spinning the Epidemic 1997Factors leading to the establishment of child-headed households: the case of Zimbabwe 2007The effects of high HIV prevalence on orphanhood and living arrangements of children in Malawi, Tanzania, and South Africa

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2012Resilience through participation and coping-enabling social environments: the case of HIV-affected children in sub-Saharan Africa 2010Data availability on men's involvement in families in sub‐Saharan Africa to inform family‐centred programmes for children affected by HIV and AIDS 2010A Profile Of Children Living In South Africa In 2008 2015‘Once upon a time …’: Orphanhood, childhood studies and the depoliticisation of childhood poverty in southern Africa 2011Adoption in South Africa: trends and patterns in social work practice

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