South Africa has rapidly reduced trade barriers since the end of Apartheid, yet agricultural production and exports have remained sluggish. Also, poverty and unemployment have risen and become increasingly concentrated in rural areas. This paper examines the extent to which remaining price distortions, both domestic and foreign, are contributing to the underperformance of the agricultural sector vis-a-vis the rest of the economy. The author draws on a computable general equilibrium (CGE) and micro-simulation model of South Africa that is linked to the results of a global trade model.
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Showing items 1 through 9 of 59.-
Library ResourceReports & ResearchPolicy Papers & BriefsJune, 2009South Africa, Southern Africa, Africa
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Library Resource
A Case Study of South Africa
Reports & ResearchPolicy Papers & BriefsDecember, 2008South Africa, Southern Africa, AfricaSouth Africa's growth experience provides an example of how contrasting growth trends long-term decline followed by improved growth pivot around political change, in this case a transition to democracy. In the decade prior to 1994, South Africa experienced the worst period of economic growth since the end of the Second World War, with growth variable and declining.
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Library ResourceReports & ResearchPolicy Papers & BriefsDecember, 2008Botswana, Africa
Botswana represents one of the few development success stories in Sub-Saharan Africa. Real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth averaged almost 9 percent between 1960 and 2005, far above the Sub-Saharan Africa average. Real GDP per capita grew even faster, averaging more than 10 percent a year -- the most rapid economic growth of any country in the world. The crucial question is: Why has Botswana grown the way it has done, and what lessons does it offer?
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Library Resource
A Critical Review
Reports & ResearchPolicy Papers & BriefsMay, 2012South Africa, Southern Africa, AfricaThis paper provides an overview of land reform in South Africa from 1994 to 2011, with the focus on the land redistribution. The government policies and associated implementation since 1994 have not generated expected social and economic results for a number of reasons. Even where land has been transferred, it appears to have had minimal impact on the livelihoods of beneficiaries, largely because of inappropriate project design, a lack of necessary support services and shortages of working capital, leading to widespread underutilization of land.
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Library Resource
Swaziland
Reports & ResearchPolicy Papers & BriefsDecember, 2012Eswatini, AfricaDoing business sheds light on how easy or difficult it is for a local entrepreneur to open and run a small to medium-size business when complying with relevant regulations. It measures and tracks changes in regulations affecting 10 areas in the life cycle of a business: starting a business, dealing with construction permits, getting electricity, registering property, getting credit, protecting investors, paying taxes, trading across borders, enforcing contracts and resolving insolvency.
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Library ResourceReports & ResearchTraining Resources & ToolsNovember, 2012Southern Africa, Africa, Eastern Africa, Southern Asia, Western Africa
In the future scenario for livestock development, there is a continuing role for smallholder producers, particular for dairy and small ruminants, relying heavily on grass and crop-residues, however in a growth mode, intensifying production, and enhancing the efficiency of resource use (less land, labor and feed resources per unit product). In particular improving the efficiency of converting feed into milk and meat will be critical to increase their income.
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Library Resource
Focus on Green Growth
Reports & ResearchTraining Resources & ToolsNovember, 2011South Africa, Southern Africa, AfricaThe global financial roller coaster, with the Euro zone as its lead car, has hit economic prospects across the globe. The South African economy, with its close links to the world economy, has suffered, too, resulting in weakened growth prospects, lower fiscal revenues, lower and more volatile valuation of the rand, and dampened external financing. This further compounds the policy challenges facing the authorities, on top of their preoccupation with unyielding unemployment, which requires higher and more inclusive economic growth.
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Library Resource
Lesotho Country Profile 2016
Training Resources & ToolsReports & ResearchPolicy Papers & BriefsDecember, 2016Lesotho, AfricaThe Enterprise Surveys (ES) focus on many aspects of the business environment. These factors can be accommodating or constraining for firms and play an important role in whether an economy’s private sector will thrive or not. An accommodating business environment is one that encourages firms to operate efficiently. Such conditions strengthen incentives for firms to innovate and to increase productivity, key factors for sustainable development.
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Library Resource
An Agenda for Competitiveness and Diversification
Reports & ResearchTraining Resources & ToolsSeptember, 2012Botswana, AfricaBotswana has been one of the most successful countries in the developing world over the last 40 years by many measures. Incomes have grown at a sustained pace, poverty has fallen, and the citizenry has become more educated. To be sure, poverty and income inequalities remain a problem, but rising standards of living have meant a better life for this generation of Batswana than any before it. The question facing the country leadership is whether this commendable performance can be sustained into the next generation. There are clouds on the horizon that cannot be ignored.
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Library Resource
Removing Barriers to Regional Trade in Food Staples
Reports & ResearchTraining Resources & ToolsOctober, 2012Kenya, Zambia, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Malawi, Niger, Sub-Saharan Africa, Western Africa, Africa, Eastern Africa, Southern AfricaAfrica's growing demand for food has been met increasingly by imports from the global market. This, coupled with rising global food prices, brings ever-mounting food import bills. In addition, population growth and changing demand patterns will double demands over the next 10 years. Two key issues must be addressed: (a) establishing a consistent and stable policy environment for regional trade in fertilizers; and (b) investing in institutions that reduce the transaction costs of coordination failures.
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