A South African pilot of the Minimum Income Standards approach

This chapter reports the pilot work with the “Minimum Income Standards” (MIS) methodology in South Africa. It talks about the studies in South Africa that present some challenges relating to cultural factors, such as the different connotations of the term “minimum” and “decent standard of living.” It also describes the difficulties of bringing together people with different backgrounds, ethnicities, and languages for reference budget research in the “Rainbow Nation.” The chapter also emphasizes other ethical challenges involved in the study, such as bringing together very wealthy people and very poor people to discuss minimum standards in a highly unequal country context. It reviews important lessons taken from forward budget research in diverse settings where there are often major challenges to overcome.