The Basic Needs Basket Project grew out of a need to contextualise how poverty, an unstable economy, inflation and increasing food and basic necessities costs affect lower income households and their ability to lead a decent standard of living. In highlighting the need to address the unacceptable poverty that has become a reality for the majority, the Basic Needs Basket Project has endeavoured to broaden the dialogue on poverty, hunger and what is required for a dignified, decent, affordable and healthy lifestyle for all.

The Studies in Poverty and Inequality Institute (SPII) was registered in 2006 due to a growing concern about poverty and inequality in South Africa. SPI’s core mission was to understand the nature and causes of poverty and inequality and to contribute to policy solutions. In 2006 South Africa did not have any measurement of poverty like the national poverty lines we have now, which were introduced in part as a response to SPII’s early work. SPII’s first project focused on understanding poverty through a level of knowledge that is deeper than money-metric poverty lines. This led to the development of the highly successful Decent Standard of Living (DSL) project in which SPII collaborated with various partners, including organised labour, civil society, academia, Social Development, StatsSA, National Treasury, and the Presidency.

This research presents a Decent Standard of Living (DSL) and a DSL Index (DSLI) for South Africa. It is based on a concept for relative poverty that focuses on the ability of people to achieve a socially determined acceptable standard of living to enable them to participate fully in society.