Econ3x3
Youth unemployment: can labour-market intermediaries help?
17th September 2015 Labour-market intermediaries can make a significant contribution to the reduction of youth unemployment.They recognise that the demand for labour... →
How flexible is the South African labour market in the short and long run?
31st August 2015 The inflexibility of the labour market is commonly used as a scapegoat to explain high unemployment. Yet new evidence shows that only in specific... →
Informal settlements: poverty traps or ladders to work?
12th August 2015 Informal urban settlements have a poor reputation as hotspots of social unrest, squalor and crime. Yet there is another side to them: as... →
How effective is VAT zero rating as a pro-poor policy?
20th July 2015 In most countries with VAT, certain goods and services are zero rated to alleviate the tax burden on the poor. However, this may not be the most... →
A national minimum wage: moving the debate forward?
29th June 2015 The debate on a national minimum wage appears to occur in different universes. The main institutional protagonists – organised labour and the... →
Domestic abuse of children severely reduces their educational achievement
22nd April 2015 Many South African children are maltreated in the home in some way, but we know little about the long-term effects of abuse on child development.... →
The national minimum wage debate: looking beyond a narrow focus on labour markets
17th March 2015 Most contributions to the debate on a national minimum wage adopt a narrow view of labour markets and accept that the structure of the economy will... →
The layout of the township economy: the surprising spatial distribution of informal township enterprises
3rd March 2015 A small-area census of micro-enterprises in Cape Town townships reveals that informal enterprises are located throughout the township, including in... →
Technology, labour power and labour’s declining income share in post-apartheid South Africa
17th February 2015 The share of labour in aggregate income in South Africa has declined significantly since 1993, while that of capital has increased. Concurrently,... →
Unpacking labour’s declining income share: manufacturing, mining and growing inequality
4th February 2015 While the share of capital increased, labour’s share of total income earned in South Africa fell significantly during the first two decades after... →
What is at issue in the minimum wage debate?
20th January 2015 The debate about implementing a national minimum wage obscures the key point, which is the level at which a national minimum wage should be set. A... →
Should agriculture receive greater support as part of an inclusive growth strategy?
26th November 2014 In developing countries, agricultural growth is generally employment intensive and pro-poor but this sector in South Africa has been subject to a... →
Enabling growth: redistribution priorities for South Africa
12th November 2014 If the National Development Plan is to be effectively implemented, we need clarity about the mechanisms through which growth and redistribution can... →
Redistribution is part of the toolkit to promote growth
7th October 2014 A recent IMF study of several countries provides robust evidence that a high level of income inequality weakens the prospects of sustained economic... →
How inclusive is economic growth in South Africa?
10th September 2014 While everybody seems to favour the pursuit of inclusive growth, this concept is rarely clearly defined in the policy debate. Inclusive growth is... →
How the old age pension is helping young people from rural areas find jobs
31st July 2014 It is important to know whether a social grant such as the old age pension eases financial constraints in rural areas, thereby allowing young men... →
Do poor children really benefit from the child support grant?
10th July 2014 The child support grant has been praised as one of the government’s most successful anti-poverty programmes. The rapid extension of the grant... →
More financial aid is not the best way to close the racial gap in tertiary education
19th June 2014 South Africa’s large racial gap in enrolment in tertiary education can be attributed to the widely varying quality of primary and secondary... →
Poverty may have declined, but deprivation and poverty are still worst in the former homelands
27th May 2014 Former homeland areas continue to have significantly higher levels of deprivation and poverty than the rest of South Africa. Of all the former... →
Poverty may have declined, but women and female-headed households still suffer most
12th May 2014 Amidst a decline in general poverty rates since 2000, women and people living in female-headed households still are significantly worse off. Women... →
Enforcement and compliance: the case of minimum wages and mandatory contracts for domestic workers
14th April 2014 Given South Africa’s small formal labour market and high unemployment, it is important to know whether the regulation of an informal employment... →
How suitable is a ‘developmental state’ to tackle unemployment, inequality and poverty in South Africa?
27th March 2014 The National Development Plan envisions the achievement of a ‘capable and developmental state’. Developmental states are usually associated with... →
What does the ‘middle class’ mean in a polarised, developing country such as South Africa?
12th March 2014 In a developing, highly unequal country such as South Africa, it is unlikely that a definition of the middle class that is based on an income... →
What is the role of manufacturing in boosting economic growth and employment in South Africa?
11th February 2014 There is a widespread view that countries no longer need to industrialise in order to develop. However, in South Africa manufacturing remains the... →
Cape Town’s trade in wild medicines: ecological threat or essential livelihood resource?
29th January 2014 Cape Town is the urban centrepiece of a globally unique and highly diverse natural environment which should take priority in conservation... →
How did hunger levels in the former homelands catch up with the rest of South Africa? A hundred years after the Land Act of 1913
14th January 2014 A century after the Land Act of 1913, and 20 years after the abolition of homelands, differences in poverty persist between the former homeland... →
Why are foreign-run spaza shops more successful? The rapidly changing spaza sector in South Africa
13th November 2013 This article examines the contrasting business models in the spaza shop sector, and compares foreign-run businesses with South African businesses.... →
The impact of youth employment incentives and wage subsidies: Results of a trial run
29th October 2013 The Employment Incentive Tax Bill offers tax subsidies to firms to employ new young workers. An evaluation of the impact of a wage subsidy voucher... →
The matric certificate is still valuable in the labour market
15th October 2013 Increasing levels of youth unemployment and learners’ poor performance at school have led to claims that the matric certificate no longer has much... →
What caused the increase in unemployment in the late 1990s? Were education policies partly responsible?
18th September 2013 In the late 1990s the Department of Education restricted the re-enrolment of over-aged learners and the number of times underperforming learners... →
The effect of basic infrastructure delivery on welfare in rural and urban municipalities.
4th September 2013 Access to a comprehensive set of basic infrastructure services is essential to attain social development goals and ensure equal opportunity for all... →
Unlocking the growth and employment potential of business in the margins
13th August 2013 Marginalised businesses provide livelihood and income opportunities for a large section of the population. However, these businesses are not able... →
The significant decline in poverty in its many dimensions since 1993
30th July 2013 The measurement of poverty should include dimensions of well-being that cannot be measured in monetary terms. Data on health, education and... →
Is the middle class becoming better off? Two perspectives
16th July 2013 Two very different pictures emerge when one compares income changes of the relatively affluent ‘middle class’ with those of people in the literal... →
How do the non-searching unemployed feel about their situation? On the definition of unemployment
26th June 2013 New evidence suggests that non-searching unemployed people are significantly less satisfied with their lives than people who are not economically... →
The impact of sectoral minimum wage laws in South Africa
12th June 2013 The introduction of minimum wage laws in five non-agricultural sectors has not been associated with a significant loss in employment in the years... →
How much do unions and bargaining councils elevate wages?
29th May 2013 Past studies have found that trade union members earn substantially higher wages than non-union workers. New results suggest a much lower union... →
How high is graduate unemployment in South Africa? A much-needed update
13th May 2013 The frequently reported ‘crisis in graduate unemployment’ in South Africa is a fallacy based on questionable research. Not only is graduate... →
Who are the middle class in South Africa? Does it matter for policy?
30th April 2013 The middle class is a hot topic in media and policy circles. But how should the middle class be defined, particularly in a country with high levels... →
The Budget’s fiscal stance: The non-cyclical element may be a cause for concern
16th April 2013 It is estimated that less than half of the present main budget deficit of 5.7% is explained by cyclical factors. The remainder reflects a... →
The Budget: both the fiscal stance and ‘structural stance’ are sound
25th March 2013 Many economists have argued that the government’s fiscal stance in the recent budget is verging on the risky. This article argues that the fiscal... →
