Mutual Accommodation and Clientelist Politics in South African School Education

This research paper examines the emergence of clientelist politics within the post-apartheid public school education system in South Africa, specifically focusing on the Eastern Cape and Gauteng provinces.

• A form of clientelist politics has developed in South African school education, centered on 'promotional' posts. This system is locally organized and lacks a centralized state or party core. Local unionists seek preferential access to these positions through methods including collusion with district education officials, community members, or the use and threat of violence.
• The governance of the education sector in the Eastern Cape and Gauteng provinces is characterized as a fragmented and unstable system of 'mutual accommodation'. This system links the livelihood strategies of impoverished residents and the upward mobility goals of teachers with the accumulation strategies of union leaders, administrators, and senior politicians.

APA

Meny-Gibert, S. (2023). Mutual Accommodation and Clientelist Politics in South African School Education. Public Affairs Research Institute. https://pari.org.za/journal-article-mutual-accommodation-clientelist-politics-in-south-african-school-education/

Chicago

Meny-Gibert, Sarah. Mutual Accommodation and Clientelist Politics in South African School Education. Public Affairs Research Institute, 2023. https://pari.org.za/journal-article-mutual-accommodation-clientelist-politics-in-south-african-school-education/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Meny-Gibert |first1=Sarah |title=Mutual Accommodation and Clientelist Politics in South African School Education |publisher=Public Affairs Research Institute |date=9 October 2023 |url=https://pari.org.za/journal-article-mutual-accommodation-clientelist-politics-in-south-african-school-education/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{menygibert2023mutual, author = {Meny-Gibert, Sarah}, title = {{Mutual Accommodation and Clientelist Politics in South African School Education}}, institution = {Public Affairs Research Institute}, year = {2023}, month = oct, url = {https://pari.org.za/journal-article-mutual-accommodation-clientelist-politics-in-south-african-school-education/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }