About Us

About Studies in Poverty and Inequality Institute

Studies in Poverty and Inequality Institute (SPII) is an independent not -for -profit trust based in Johannesburg, South Africa, established in 2006.
The main objectives of its founding trustees was to create a safe space within which policy analysts and activists in civil society, researchers, intellectuals and government policy makers could come together to interrogate the development and implementation of effective evidence -based anti-poverty policies necessary to address the growing levels of economic, social and political exclusions and inequalities in South Africa in particular, as well as the Southern Africa region more broadly;
to encourage our democracy and institutions of democracy and to support the realization of our social, economic and political constitutional rights.


These objectives are pursued through the following:

• Bringing together policy makers, analysts and implementers from government, academia and civil society formations, as well as international role players/ academics/ researchers and activists;
• Sharing information about poverty and inequality research and policy processes in order to stimulate new areas of collaboration among stakeholders;
• Identifying further areas of research and/or gaps in current knowledge on an ongoing basis and to commission such research which will contribute to public knowledge and innovation;
• Disseminating information and research produced by the Institute to assist in policy development processes and campaigns;
• Participating in building regional collaboration and disseminating innovative practices focused on fighting poverty and inequality in the Southern African region.
  

What sets SPII apart from other research and policy institutes is the emphasis on both content (knowledge) and process (inclusive participation).
In addition, our approach relies on identifying and exploring not only areas of between policy actors, but also areas of dissent.
Unspoken assumptions and ideological values ultimately will impact on the development of appropriate policies; our methodology acknowledges this and
through our methodology we provide space for policy actors to challenge their own positions and those of their peers and to distinguish between occasions that require intellectual engagement from those that are determined through ideological engagement.
Cutting across all of our research work is the commitment to a strengthening of public participation in the policy and political arena as an essential condition precedent for South Africa’s constitutionally guaranteed participative democracy.
Supporting people’s active involvement in decision-making processes also emphasizes the agency of individuals and communities, rather than seeing people as passive recipients of the largesse of state or charity.
SPII’s board and staff collectively represent an impressive collection of skills, knowledge and most importantly, experience drawn from a variety of progressive structures and organisations both pre -and post -transition.
This social capital provides SPII with access to an extensive network of people both locally, regionally and internationally that we are able to draw on and that qualitatively add to our work.

VISION STATEMENT

The Studies in Poverty and Inequality Institute is an independent research think tank which focuses on generating new knowledge, information and analysis in the field of poverty and inequality studies. Through facilitating collaborative partnerships with and between government, institutions of democracy, academia and civil society organizations, we will be able to develop innovative and empirically based social and economic policies capable of combating poverty, reducing inequality and promoting sustainable development. We will work to support the development of a tradition of effective public participation in policy making and implementation.

MISSION STATEMENT

The Studies in Poverty and Inequality Institute will realize its vision by:

• Bringing together policy makers, analysts and implementers from government, academia and civil society formations, as well as international role players/ academics/ researchers and activists;
• Sharing information about poverty and inequality research and policy processes in order to stimulate new areas of collaboration among stakeholders;
• Constantly identifying further areas of research and/or gaps in current knowledge and to commission such research which will contribute to public knowledge and innovation;
• Disseminating information and research produced by the Institute to assist in policy development processes and campaigns;
• Participating in building regional collaboration and disseminating innovative practices focused on fighting poverty and inequality in the Southern African region.

OUR PARTNERS

The Southern Africa Trust (SAT) (Regional Funding Partner for foreign development aid, including DFID and Canadian CIDA)
The Open Society Foundation, South Africa (OSFSA)
Atlantic Philanthropies
The Conflict and Governance Facility (CAGE) (Joint South African National Treasury and European Union funding facility).

OBJECTIVES of Studies in Poverty and Inequality Institute

SPII shall:

• Facilitate participation and consensus building around policy development in South Africa, thus strengthening and deepening participatory democracy
• Foster better understanding of the dynamics driving poverty and inequality in South Africa and to contribute to empirically based policy interventions to eradicate the causes and effects of poverty
• Develop processes to monitor and evaluate poverty eradication programmes
• Participate in building regional and international partnerships and disseminate innovative practices focused on fighting poverty and inequality
• Generally to establish, support and join in similar activities which in the opinion of the trustees are incidental to the aforegoing principles and ancillary objectives.

Intended Impact of Spii

• Strengthening the input, oversight and mandate of the institutions of democracy
• Innovative and integrated anti-poverty strategies on a regional and South-South basis
• Agreed, understood and transparent policy making processes
• Informed, critical, empirically based and sound anti-poverty policies and strategies
• On-going and informed public debate on poverty, its causes and effects
• Regular monitoring of the impact of policies and strategies
• Informed and responsible civil society participation in policy making and programme implementation