COVID-19 and Homelessness: Response of South African Municipalities during First Wave of the Pandemic

Abstract

The coronavirus is a quintessentially urban pandemic that wreaked havoc in all social settings, from villages to cities. Homelessness can create an ideal environment for the rapid spread of the SARS-CoV-2 within this vulnerable group. The current pandemic has exposed the inaccessibility of healthcare services by those experiencing homelessness. As such, this paper uses an event methodology to examine how (1) local municipalities have responded to homelessness during the COVID-19 pandemic and (2) the extent of the involvement of civil society groups across Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg. It also compares each city's policy frameworks and strategies to identify the challenges and successes experienced. Findings suggest that although a cookie-cutter technique does not exist for addressing homelessness during the current pandemic, there are valuable lessons to be learnt such as the use of public-private partnerships with shared responsibility. It is hoped that through the findings of this research, future local, provincial and national homelessness housing policy could avoid the barriers that will arise in addressing homelessness.