Modelling the Implications of Covid-19 Pandemic on Healthcare Access in Rural South Africa: Appraising Sustainable Development Goal 3


Loveness Sawada(1), Sakiel Albert Monama(2*)

(1) Department of Development Planning and Management, University of Limpopo University str., Turfloop, Sovenga, Limpopo, Republic of South Africa, 0727, South Africa
(2) Department of Development Planning and Management University of Limpopo University str., Turfloop, Sovenga, Limpopo, Republic of South Africa, 0727, South Africa
(*) Corresponding Author

Abstract


Most studies have concentrated on the impacts of Covid-19 on socio-economic development. Despite this focus, there remains a significant gap in the literature, with limited exploration into how the Covid-19 pandemic has presented substantial challenges in rural South Africa, particularly concerning healthcare access, and how it has hindered progress towards the achievement of sustainable development goal 3 outlined in Agenda 2030. This paper seeks to analyse the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic, which have created obstacles in the pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of Agenda 2030, specifically goal 3, which aims to ensure healthy lives and well-being for all individuals across all age groups. The paper contends that the Covid-19 pandemic has presented formidable hurdles that have impeded healthcare access and advancement in numerous rural communities in South Africa. Currently, many rural regions appear to be falling behind in their efforts to guarantee healthy lives and improve societal well-being, as outlined in SDG 3 of Agenda 2030 and Sections 24 and 27 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (1996). This paper is primarily theoretical, drawing extensively from an examination of existing literature to establish its arguments, supported by a desk-based study that reinforces its position. The paper reveals that the Covid-19 pandemic has affected South Africa’s interim strategy to accomplish SDG 3, which aims to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all individuals by 2030, by necessitating a duplication of its budget and a reallocation of resources towards healthcare-related initiatives. In conclusion, the paper asserts that achieving universal good health and well-being (SDG 3) by 2030 is currently unfeasible and speculative for rural South Africa, given the country’s considerable distance to cover and numerous socio-economic challenges that are impeding progress. This paper recommends early strategic planning and innovative approaches from both public and private stakeholders to advance good health and well-being for all, thereby realising the objectives of SDG 3 of Agenda 2030.

Keywords


Covid-19 Pandemic, Dependency Theory, Healthcare access, Implications, SDG 3, Rural South Africa

Full Text:

PDF

References


Abdelatif, N., Peer, N. & Manda, S. O. (2021). National prevalence of coronary heart disease and stroke in South Africa from 1990–2017: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Cardiovascular Journal of Africa, 32(3), 156-160.

Abdool Karim, S. S. (2020). The South African response to the pandemic. New England Journal of Medicine, 382(24), e95. https://doi.org/10.1056/nejmc2014960.

Adam, F. (2021). ‘Government must urgently deal with South Africa’s deepening water crisis.’ Daily Maverick. 29 April. Available at https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2021-04-29-government-must-urgently-deal-with-south-africas-deepening-water-crisis/. Accessed 27 July 2021.

Alobo, M. (2021). Strengthened health systems are needed to tackle COVID-19 in Africa. Nature Medicine, 27(7), 1126-1127. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-021-01395-6.

Anyanwu, J. C. & Salami, A. O. (2021). The impact of COVID‐19 on African economies: An introduction. African Development Review, 33(Suppl 1), S1. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8268.12531.

Arifin, S.R.M. (2018). Ethical considerations in qualitative study. International Journal of Care Scholars, 1(2), 30-33. https://doi.org/10.31436/ijcs.v1i2.82

Arndt, C., Davies, R., Gabriel, S., Harris, L., Makrelov, K., Modise, B., Robinson, S., Simbanegavi, W., Van Seventer, D. & Anderson, L. (2020). Impact of Covid-19 on the South African economy. Southern Africa-Towards Inclusive Economic Development Working Paper, 111, 1-37.

Burger, P. & Calitz, E. (2021). Covid‐19, economic growth and South African fiscal policy. South African Journal of Economics, 89(1), 3-24. https://doi.org/10.1111/saje.12270.

Butler, M., Botes, L., Brown, S. & Smit, F. (2023). Contemporary risk factors associated with ischaemic heart disease in central South Africa: a single-centre study. Cardiovascular Journal of Africa, 34, 1-6. http://www.cvja.co.za/onlinefirst/DOI-10-5830-CVJA-2023-053.pdf.

Daniels, R. C. & Casale, D. (2022). The impact of COVID-19 in South Africa during the first year of the crisis: Evidence from the NIDS-CRAM survey. Development Southern Africa, 39(5), 605-622. https://doi.org/10.1080/0376835x.2022.2116408.

de Villiers, K. (2021). Bridging the health inequality gap: an examination of South Africa’s social innovation in health landscape. Infectious Diseases of Poverty, 10, 1-7. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40249-021-00804-9.

Department of Health. (2020). National Health Insurance (NHI). Available at: https://www.health.gov.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/some-key-messages-on-nhi.pdf. Accessed 02 January 2024.

Department, H. Q. I. A. (2022). How South Africa Can Advance Reforms to Achieve its Climate Goals. IMF. Available at: https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2022/02/21/cf-how-south-africa-can-advance-reforms-to-achieve-its-climate-goals. Accessed 23 December 2023.

Ehrenberg, J. P., Utzinger, J., Fontes, G., da Rocha, E. M. M., Ehrenberg, N., Zhou, X. N. & Steinmann, P. (2021). Efforts to mitigate the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic: potential entry points for neglected tropical diseases. Infectious diseases of poverty, 10(01), 4-13. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40249-020-00790-4.

Fagbemi, F. (2021). COVID-19 and sustainable development goals (SDGs): An appraisal of the emanating effects in Nigeria. Research in Globalization, 3, 100047. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resglo.2021.100047.

Francis, D., Valodia, I. & Webster, E. (2020). Politics, policy, and inequality in South Africa under COVID-19. Agrarian South: Journal of Political Economy, 9(3), 342-355. https://doi.org/10.1177/2277976020970036.

Gittings, L., Price, Y., Kelly, J., Kannemeyer, N., Thomas, A., Medley, S., Ralayo, N., Omollo, V., Cluver, L., Logie, C. H. & Evalia, H. (2022). Health and development-related priorities and challenges of adolescents and young people: findings from South Africa and Kenya prior to and during COVID-19 pandemic. Psychology, Health & Medicine, 27(sup1), 193-218. https://doi.org/10.1080/13548506.2022.2108084.

Hendricks, C. & Majozi, N., 2021. South Africa’s international relations: A new dawn?. Journal of Asian and African studies, 56(1), 64-78. https://doi.org/10.1177/0021909620946851.

Human Rights Watch. (2022). IMF/World Bank: Targeted Safety Net Programs Fall Short on Rights Protection. Available at: https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/04/14/imf/world-bank-targeted-safety-net-programs-fall-short-rights-protection. Accessed 27 December 2023.

Ikwegbue, P. C., Enaifoghe, A. O., Maduku, H. & Agwuna, L. U. (2021). The challenges of COVID-19 pandemic and South Africa's response. African Renaissance, 18(1), 271. https://doi.org/10.31920/2516-5305/2021/18n1a13.

Jacobsen, M. (2021). Health or Wealth during a global pandemic?: An interpretivist analysis of the World Bank Group’s COVID-19 strategy on health.

Kruk, M. E., Gage, A. D., Arsenault, C., Jordan, K., Leslie, H. H., Roder-DeWan, S., Adeyi, O., Barker, P., Daelmans, B., Doubova, S. V. & English, M. (2018). High-quality health systems in the Sustainable Development Goals era: time for a revolution. The Lancet global health, 6(11), e1196-e1252. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2214-109X(18)30386-3.

Lalla-Edward, S. T., Mosam, A., Kahn, K., Hofman, K. & Goldstein, S. (2022). Essential health services delivery in South Africa during COVID-19: Community and healthcare worker perspectives. Frontiers in public health, 10, 992481. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2022.992481.

Levy, B., Hirsch, A., Naidoo, V. & Nxele, M. (2021). South Africa: When strong institutions and massive inequalities collide. Endowment for International Peace, Cape Town: Carnegie. https://carnegieendowment.org/files/202103-Levy_etal_SouthAfrica.pdf.

Mamokhere, J., Mabeba, S. J., & Kgobe, F. K. L. (2022). The contemporary challenges municipalities face in effectively implementing municipal service partnerships. EUREKA: Social and Humanities, 2, 58–69. http://doi. org/10.21303/2504-5571.2022.00230

Mentes, M. (2023). Sustainable development economy and the development of green economy in the European Union. Energy, Sustainability and Society, 13(1), 32. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13705-023-00410-7.

Mhlanga, D. (2023). Post-COVID-19 in South Africa: The Pandemic and Public Finances toward Meeting the Sustainable Development Goals. In Post-Independence Development in Africa: Decolonisation and Transformation Prospects (345-363). Cham: Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-30541-2_19.

Monama S. A., Mokoele N. J., Mokgotho K. D. (2022). South african spatial planning fragmentation: repealing the apartheid planning imprint. International Journal of Entrepreneurship, 26(S1), 1-11.

Mthembu, D. & Nhamo, G. (2021). Landing the climate SDG into South Africa’s development trajectory: Mitigation policies, strategies and institutional setup. Sustainability, 13(5), 2991. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13052991.

Mubangizi, J. C. (2021). Poor lives matter: COVID-19 and the plight of vulnerable groups with specific reference to poverty and inequality in South Africa. Journal of African Law, 65(S2), 237-258. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0021855321000292.

Muigua, P. D. (2020). Redefining Development in Kenya-reflections and lessons from the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic. Journal of Conflict Management Sustainable Development, 4(4).

Nonet, G. A. H., Gössling, T., Van Tulder, R. & Bryson, J. M. (2022). Multi-stakeholder engagement for the sustainable development goals: Introduction to the special issue. Journal of Business Ethics, 180(4), 945-957. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-022-05192-0.

Nwosu, C. O. & Oyenubi, A. (2021). Income-related health inequalities associated with the coronavirus pandemic in South Africa: A decomposition analysis. International journal for equity in health, 20, 1-12.

Odeku, K. O. (2021). Socio-economic implications of covid-19 pandemic in South Africa. Academy of Entrepreneurship Journal, 27, 1-6.

Oguntuase, O. J. (2021). Africa, 2030 Agenda and Agenda 2063: The Imperative of Transnational Governance. In Handbook of Research on Institution Development for Sustainable and Inclusive Economic Growth in Africa (1-14). IGI Global.

O'Leary, Z. (2014). The essential guide to doing your research project. United Kingdom: Sage Publications.

Oleribe, O. O., Momoh, J., Uzochukwu, B. S., Mbofana, F., Adebiyi, A., Barbera, T., Williams, R. and Taylor-Robinson, S. D. (2019). Identifying key challenges facing healthcare systems in Africa and potential solutions. International journal of general medicine, 395-403. https://doi.org/10.2147/IJGM.S223882.

Panneer, S., Kantamaneni, K., Palaniswamy, U., Bhat, L., Pushparaj, R. R. B., Nayar, K. R., Soundari Manuel, H., Flower, F. L. L. & Rice, L. (2022). Health, economic and social development challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic: strategies for multiple and interconnected issues. In Healthcare (10(5), 770). MDPI. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare10050770.

Roser, M. (2023). Ensure Healthy Lives and Promote well-being for All at All Ages. Our World in Data. Available at: https://ourworldindata.org/sdgs/good-health-wellbeing. Accessed 21 December 2023.

Schröder, M., Bossert, A., Kersting, M., Aeffner, S., Coetzee, J., Timme, M. & Schlüter, J. (2021). COVID-19 in South Africa: Outbreak despite interventions. Scientific reports, 11(1), 4956. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-84487-0.

Selelo, M. E. & Khwela, M. N. (2022). Analysis of the Business Inequalities Stimulated by the Fourth Industrial Revolution between Corporates and Small and Micro Enterprises in South Africa. Technium Social Sciences Journal, 29, 497-508.

Selelo, M. E. (2021). The fourth industrial revolution as a fuel to higher education’s accessibility in South Africa: Challenges and opportunities. digiTAL 2021, 189.

Stiegler, N. & Bouchard, J. P. (2020). South Africa: Challenges and successes of the COVID-19 lockdown. In Annales Médico-psychologiques, revue psychiatrique (178(7), 695-698). Elsevier Masson. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amp.2020.05.006.

Tendengu, S., Kapingura, F. M. & Tsegaye, A. (2022). Fiscal policy and economic growth in South Africa. Economies, 10(9), 204. https://doi.org/10.3390/economies10090204.

The World Bank. (2023). The World Bank in South Africa. The World Bank. Available at: https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/southafrica/overview. Accessed 04 January 2024.

Ujewe, S. J. & van Staden, W. C. (2021). Inequitable access to healthcare in Africa: reconceptualising the “accountability for reasonableness framework” to reflect indigenous principles. International Journal for Equity in Health, 20, 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12939-021-01482-7.

United Nations. (2023). National Sustainable Development Strategies (NSDS)/Department of Economic and Social Affairs. sdgs.un.org. Available at: https://sdgs.un.org/topics/national-sustainable-development-strategies. Accessed 03 January 2024.

Williams, C. & Papa, M. (2020). Rethinking “Alliances”: The Case of South Africa as a Rising Power. African Security, 13(4), 325-352. https://doi.org/10.1080/19392206.2020.1871796.

Wong, A., (2021). The interconnectedness of sustainable development goals: Boom or gloom. Earth Org. Available at: https://earth.org/the-interconnectedness-ofsustainable-development-goals. Accessed on 2 April 2023).

Wong, L. P. (2008). Data analysis in qualitative research: A brief guide to using NVivo. Malaysian family physician: The official journal of the Academy of Family Physicians of Malaysia, 3(1), 14-20.

Zhao, W., Yin, C., Hua, T., Meadows, M. E., Li, Y., Liu, Y., Cherubini, F., Pereira, P. & Fu, B. (2022). Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals in the post-pandemic era. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, 9(1), 1-7. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-022-01283-5.




DOI: https://doi.org/10.15575/jpan.v16i2.34376

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright (c) 2024 Loveness Sawada and Sakiel Albert Monama

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

 

PUBLICA: Jurnal Pemikiran Administrasi Negara
Has Been Indexed on:

  Harvard Library  
    
     
    

 

 

 

1st Floor, FISIP Building, UIN Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung

A.H. Nasution Street No. 105 Cibiru, Bandung, 40614

E-mail: publica@uinsgd.ac.id

 


 Publica : Jurnal Pemikiran Administrasi Negara is licensed under Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International