The Mesebetsi labour Force Survey was undertaken to help fill some of the existing knowledge gaps with regard to the labour market in South Africa (Mesebetsi means "work" in Sesotho). The survey was a co-operation project of the Department of Labour and the Norwegian Institute for Applied Social Science (Fafo). Fafo was the implementing agency for the study and contracted MarkData (Pty) Ltd to conduct the fieldwork for the study. The Mesebetsi Labour Force Survey was a sample survey that was carried out in all parts of South Africa gathering information on employment and unemployment, education and training, working conditions and income in both urban and rural areas.