Poverty and Disease Burden: Reflection on the Rural Community Health Services of the ‘Natives’ in the Former Northern Transvaal of South Africa, 1930s–1980s

The twentieth-century period in South Africa was characterised by social-, political- and economic disparity between blacks and whites. Poor socio-economic conditions of blacks resulted in subjection to tuberculosis and other poverty-related diseases. This study explores rural exposure to diseases due to segregationist and subsequent state of racial disparity in all spheres of live. Focus is particularly thrown at incidents of malaria and tuberculosis in the rural communities of the Transvaal. This study also considers efforts forged by government in an attempt to abate and arrest the spread of these and other epidemics through rudimentary health services. The study relies on the use of published sources, archival materials and data collected through interviews. It is the position of this study that the escalated incidence of these diseases had immense impact on the lives of the rural than urban population. Other related pandemics, such as HIV-AIDS and COVID-19 will be explored. Lastly, the study will argue that evidence of ill health and death caused associated with these diseases irrespective of invented vaccines and other related medications.