South Africa's lockdown regulations and the reinforcement of anti-informality bias

Abstract

The South African State’s attempts to “flatten the curve” of Covid-19 include a set of regulations that demonstrate a limited understanding of how poor people access food, and an ongoing bias towards large scale, formal food system actors. These reflect historical biases against informality, the Africa-wide modernization agenda, and the power of large-scale food businesses to self-identify as partners-in-development. This brief one-page article provides insight into current conditions.