Dumping on women : gender and privatisation of waste management

This book is based on research conducted in the South African municipalities of Thabazimbi, Sol Plaatje and Johannesburg. The aim of the research was to find out how privatization of waste management services affected men and women differently and if privatization makes it harder for municipalities to promote equity between women and men. The Introduction explains the research and some of the key ideas including gender, gender equity, gender division of labour, and privatization. The chapters on Thabazimbi, Sol Plaatje and Johannesburg tell the stories of gender and privatization in the three municipalities. Each chapter starts with a summary of the research findings. In Thabazimbi the municipality privatised its entire waste management service. In Sol Plaatje only the townships¿services were privatised, the municipality continued to provide services in the suburbs and business areas. The Johannesburg case study identifies the problems faced by a municipality owned private waste management company. The Summary highlights the main issues that came out of the three case studies.