About the project

Project Overview

CHASE-SA (Collaboration for Harm Reduction and Alcohol Safety in the Environment in Southern Africa) is a five-year (2025–2029) multidisciplinary research initiative led by the University of Cape Town (UCT) and the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC).

The project brings together leading research institutions and partners, including the University of Botswana (UB), the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), the Centre for the AIDS Programme of Research in South Africa (CAPRISA), and civil society organisations such as the Southern Africa Alcohol Policy Alliance (SAAPA).

Together, we are working to better understand the full range of influences on alcohol use in South Africa and Botswana to reduce alcohol-related harm, support capacity building and inform future alcohol policy research.

Why this research matters

South Africa ranks among the countries with the highest levels of heavy episodic drinking globally, with alcohol contributing substantially to the national burden of disease.

Alcohol-related harms intersect with major public health and social challenges, including trauma-related injuries and death, gender-based violence, mental health impacts, chronic disease and economic strain on households and health systems.

Alcohol harm is not driven by individual choice alone. It is shaped by:

Availability and affordability
Marketing and industry influence
Social and cultural norms
Policy and regulatory environments

Expansion of alcohol markets in low- and middle-income countries, including South Africa and Botswana, where regulatory environments are weaker and harms severe, creates new public health challenges.

There is a need for stronger, evidence-based policies and interventions that address these broader drivers. CHASE-SA aims to build the evidence base and partnerships needed to support effective context-specific policy reform and community-led solutions that reduce alcohol-related harm and strengthen public health.

Evidence from COVID-19

Evidence from South Africa’s COVID-19 alcohol sales bans showed immediate reductions in injury-related deaths, highlighting the strong relationship between alcohol environments and health outcomes. These events provide a rare opportunity and demonstrate the importance of evidence-based alcohol policy.

CHASE-SA helps build the scientific evidence needed to understand and reduce alcohol-related harm.

Injury related deaths, WC, South African Medical Journal

Study Locations

Research is conducted across nine sites in: Western Cape, SA | Gauteng, SA | Botswana

Research Approach

CHASE-SA uses a whole-system approach to understand alcohol harm, examining the relationships between:

Policy and regulation
Industry strategies
Community environments
Consumption patterns
Health and economic outcomes

This approach maps the alcohol environment and identifies opportunities for effective interventions.

Logic Framework

The logic framework for the project is based on Advancing alcohol research in low-income and middle-income countries: a global alcohol environment framework Walls et al. (2020)

Research Focus

Through four work packages (WP), the project investigates regulatory contexts, community-level influences, and the health and economic impacts of alcohol use. Using methods such as policy reviews, mapping, interviews, surveys, and modelling, CHASE-SA builds evidence to inform effective alcohol policy and harm reduction strategies.

Impact and Outcomes

CHASE-SA aims to:

Understand alcohol environments
Build a strong evidence base
Support policy development
Strengthen research capacity
Reduce alcohol-related harm

The goal is not only to generate evidence, but to build partnerships and strengthen capacity so that research can meaningfully inform policy and reduce alcohol-related harm.