Hegemony, Water and Power: A Case Study on Water Allocation Inequalities within Agriculture in the Western Cape, South Africa

Sammanfattning: This thesis investigates the underexplored relationship between water allocation inequalities in agriculture and power distributions in the context of a recent water drought in the Western Cape province in South Africa. The thesis focused on the Municipality of Stellenbosch. The methods for the thesis consisted of online interviews and analysis of documents. Interview data were combined with the analysis of secondary source material. The theoretical framework is based on the theory of hegemony after Antonio Gramsci which is used to approach and analyze power distributions in water allocation inequalities in agriculture. The results of the thesis show a hegemonial form of power that manifests itself in three ways, namely through material prerequisites for maintaining inequalities, force and consent in political and civil society, and common sense. While the identified form of hegemony manifests the interests of commercial agriculture; it suppresses water allocations to other forms of agricultural production in the study area. The thesis contents that for future research, in the context of future water droughts in South Africa, the analysis of counter-hegemonies is required.