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Abstract
The paper gives an overview of the socio-economic profile of access to resources and social
behaviour of rural households of the Northern Province of South Africa. It is based on the
survey conducted in 24 villages covering 586 households. The preliminary results reflect a
number of disparities among men and female household heads and their occupations. Women
farmers tend to dominate the agricultural sector, while men are predominantly in the service
and industry sectors. Also, male headed households have more members than female headed
households, which are mostly single parents and have higher percentage of members under
fifteen (reflecting high fertility rates). Unemployment is rife, coupled with a significant
number of old (retired) people, and more women involved in subsistence agriculture.
Migration is prevalent, and is a source of support for households to supplement their
livelihood, since farming is not enough to meet household requirements. There is still a gap
in access to water and land resources. These results pose major challenges for agriculture in
the new millennium since access and distribution of resources will be imminent.