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Given that South Africa is known for poor enforcement, calls for stricter regulations in some sectors seem heavily misplaced writes Siseko Maposa and Mxolisi Zondo.
In South Africa, there exists a pervasive predisposition of thinking that the introduction of more regulation is the panacea for addressing anomalies of social life. The tendency to react to crisis with the imposition of more regulation translates to how government engages with social partners and the policy-making environment.
President Cyril Ramaphosa's social compact, for example, finds basis in the argument that more regulations are needed to address issues of economic underdevelopment and calls upon various social partners to work with government in developing regulations. Thus, policy-making in South Africa has tended to be highly reactionary and trapped in a never-ending cycle where crisis is met with the imposition of new regulations, which only prove to be more complex to implement.
Regrettably, rarely is enforcement ever considered an aspect of policy development that needs far greater attention if it is hoped that South Africa will address some its principal social anomalies.
Key insights from the New Institutional Economics school of thought purport that the efficacy of formal institutions depends on the strength of their enforcement. Given that South Africa is known for poor enforcement, calls for stricter regulations in some sectors seem heavily misplaced and more a product of reactionary policy making rather than a cogent consideration of true weak spots in South Africa's public policy implementation process. A few most recent examples are worth noting.
In the transport sector, the Western Cape Standing Committee on Agriculture has recently considered passing stricter speed limit laws in the Western Cape following an influx of accidents in the agricultural fleet transport industry. The proposed speed limit of 80km/h is argued to address the issue, but regrettably, the approach fails to consider determinants of dangerous driving among truck drivers in the agricultural sector – a consideration that would inevitably require government to look at working conditions and demands. Additionally, the approach fails to consider that lack of enforcement on the part of traffic authorities is the primary driver of poor road safety outcomes.
Even though the country has a robust suite of road safety laws, traffic enforcement officials are synonymous with incompetency (i.e poor road traffic and roadblock management, inconsistency in road alcohol testing ext.) and are easily prone to corruption.
READ | Talk to your children about alcohol abuse after Enyobeni tragedy – psychologist
On alcohol consumption-related matters, the deaths of 21 people at the Enyobeni Tavern in East London raised questions over the already existing debate on increasing the legal drinking age from 18 to 21 years old. Why this would in any way be thought to address underage drinking is mind-boggling.
From a regulatory perspective, South Africa holds one of the foremost alcohol control regimes in the world, which includes strong laws on preventing underage persons from attaining and consuming the substance.
Regrettably, the robust regulatory framework is crippled by the fact that authorities responsible for implementing policies are lax and, at most times, easily corruptible. As a result, in many townships across the country, taverns known for selling liquor to underaged persons operate unbothered. These outlets are left to operate in peace by law enforcement agencies and communities that lack an appreciation of their collective responsibility in addressing social ills.
Enforcement as a starter, behavioural Change as the driver
However, it is critically important not to fall into the temptation of viewing enforcement as an all-encompassing solution to the abovementioned matters. In fact, enforcement should be understood as only a starter and behavioural change as the true driver of better social outcomes.
A 2021 systematic review of alcohol behavioral change programmes among young persons conducted by researchers at the University of Australia concluded that "alcohol educational programmes should be designed alongside health education/promotion models and best-practice recommendations, to improve the likelihood of desirable behaviour related outcomes".
With regards to road safety programmes, researchers observing road safety campaigns in the past decade from the University of
Thessaly highlight "the limited application of well-structured theoretical backgrounds when designing and implementing a road safety campaign".
Simply put, in South Africa, more attention needs to be directed at producing thorough context-specific behavioural change programmes. In addition, for improved effectiveness, national social responsibility campaigns such as "Drink Responsibly" and "Arrive Alive", should be supported by comprehensive health education and promotion programmes aimed at raising awareness around associated risks of excessive consumption of alcohol and reckless driving. Here lay greater collaboration between various social partners, business, and key national departments, such as the Department of Social Development and the Department of Health, to develop and implement more nuanced educational and health promotion programmes.
- Siseko Maposa is a Stakeholder Relations and Public Policy Officer at Frontline Africa Advisory and Mxolisi Zondo is an Intern at Frontline Africa Advisory. Views expressed are of their own.
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