PRESENTATIONS
Nishal Robb (TIPS) – SA economic trends pre- and post-COVID-19: Implications for industrial policy
Itumeleng Mokoena (DNA Economics) – Trends in the global economy since 2008 and Implications for South Africa's industrial policy
Nokwanda Maseko (TIPS) – Post-covid industrial policy in the context of the climate crisis
Neva Makgetla (TIPS) – The political economy of industrial policy in SA
AGENDA
Opening Remarks and Moderator: Saul Levin (TIPS)
Presentations and discussion
• Nishal Robb (TIPS) – Insights from Paper: SA economic trends pre-and post-COVID-19: Implications for industrial policy
• Itumeleng Mokoena (DNA Economics) - Insights from TIPS Paper: Trends in the global political economy and trade
• Nokwanda Maseko (TIPS) – Insights from Paper: The climate crisis
• Neva Makgetla (TIPS) – Overview and presenting Insights: The political economic context for industrial policy
• Tanya van Meelis (COSATU) - Discussant
BACKGROUND
The COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 initiated a series of crises, ranging from supply-chain disruptions to geo-political tensions that substantially affected global markets. In South Africa, these developments aggravated joblessness and inequality, contributed to stress on network infrastructure, complicated the response to the climate crisis, and slowed overall growth. The improvement in prices for mining exports in the early 2020s provided only temporary relief.
These issues have reshaped the landscape for industrial policy in South Africa, opening up new opportunities as well as raising threats and obstacles. The development dialogue aims to promote discussion about how industrial policy has to evolve to address these new realities. To support the debate, TIPS researchers will present research undertaken over the past year that aimed to define the challenges more clearly, with in-depth dives into trends since 2020 in economic growth and employment; the climate crisis and policy responses to it; global trade and power relationships; and the local political economic context.
ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
Moderator
Saul Levin is the Executive Director of TIPS. He previously worked as a Chief Director in the Economic Development Department (EDD) with oversight over the Development Finance Institutions reporting to EDD.
Presenters
Dr Neva Makgetla is a senior economist at TIPS. Makgetla has published widely on the South African economy and worked for many years in government.
Nokwanda Maseko is a senior economist at TIPS. Her work is at the intersection of industrial policy, gender and the just transition. She previously worked as a Budget Analyst at the National Treasury, and as an Assistant Director for Industrial Policy at the Economic Development Department.
Nishal Robb is an economist at TIPS. Nishal has worked on a range of topics, including the history of South Africa’s labour-intensive clothing industry; the impact of poor school safety on education; the financialisation of South African firms and implications for structural transformation; and illicit financial flows, tax havens and industrial development in South Africa.
Itumeleng Mokoena is an economist at DNA Economics. He has worked on several projects across different sectors including financial services, government and manufacturing.
TIPS Dialogues bring together academics, policymakers, civil society organisations, workers, and practitioners
to discuss important issues and share ideas on industrial policy.
TIPS is partnering with the Department of Trade Industry and Competition (the dtic).
