Past Projects

Past Projects

This paper by Prof. Merle Holden, head of the School of Economics and Management at the University of KwaZulu-Natal Durban and Landon McMillan, an economist at TIPS, supports the view that the EU-SA FTA stimulated both imports and exports, while…
Prof. Simon Roberts, previously the director of Corporate Strategy and Industrial Development (CSID) at the University of the Witwatersrand and now chief economist at the Competition Commission in this paper explains the importance for industrial development of technological capability development…
Regional integration can be a key force for sustainable development. It can promote economic growth, reduce poverty, foster social development or protect the environment. But it can also have negative economic and social impacts, especially when the domestic regulatory framework…
02 February 2007

Trade at a glance

Description TIPS economist Mmatlou Kalaba prepares a quarterly snapshot of South Africa's trade with particular trade blocs around the world. Abstract Graphical representation of World trade and South African Trade, at a glance
Description In his paper, Albert Berry - professor of economics and director of the Latin American programme at the Centre for International Studies of the University of Toronto - identifies the impacts of globalisation and liberalisation on inequality. He finds…
The primary objectives of the Centre for Real Economy Study (Crest) were to catalyse economic research with a sectoral focus, especially relatively under-researched service sectors, and to improve the flow of information on relevant research between the policy and academic…
The South African government and the Department of Trade and Industry (the dti) in particular have embarked on a policy framework to ensure that the SA economy becomes competitive. In an increasingly traded global economy, it is recognised that national…
This paper integrates two mechanisms of economic growth barriers to international spill-overs and skill-biased effects on the income distribution. South Africa (SA) is an interesting case study because of dramatic changes in international barriers over time and policy focus to…
Since the mid-1990s, South Africa has made considerable progress in opening ups its trade regime. In 1994 South Africa committed itself to reducing and simplifying its tariff levels and structure in accordance with it offer under the GATT Uruguay Round.…
Since 1994, some restructuring of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) has taken place in South Africa (SA), which has included elements of corporatisation and commercialisation, as well as partial privatisation. The Government has committed itself to more reform. This is an ongoing…
The barrier model of productivity growth suggests that individual country productivity is related to the world technology frontier disturbed by national barriers. We offer a country study of the barrier model, exploiting the dramatic changes in the linkages to the…
Improving commuter rail service delivery is a high-priority programme of the Department of Transport (DOT). Faced with a failing business, the DOT has launched a reform programme for commuter rail, foreseeing increased public investment and possibly an extended role for…
One of the key issues that has been raised in terms of the analysis of small enterprise (SMME) support programmes in South Africa is that often support initiatives have been in the form of 'generic' packages that overlook the specificities…
The food processing sector is widely regarded as having the potential to generate economic growth, entrepreneurial opportunities and employment (FAO, 1997; CIAT, 2002; Lambert, 2001; McCormick and Atieno, 2002). In developing countries the interest in agro-processing is associated with its…
In 2004, TIPS also undertook a study to document public sector support to the small enterprise sector over the last decade for the dti. The Review documents 10 years of evolution of the dti's small enterprise support programmes and its…
This paper considers the role of provincial governments in supporting small enterprise development. It is based on research conducted by the University of Cape Town's (UCT's) Centre of Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE). It was sponsored by TIPS (Trade and Industrial…
The South African government is evaluating the economy’s performance over its first decade in power. This period can be characterised by a ‘double’ liberalisation: democratisation of the political process going hand in hand with liberalisation of the economy. This paper…
As liberalization and globalization gather pace, concern with industrial competitiveness is growing, not just in developing countries but also in mature industrial ones. But it is the former that face the most intense competitive pressures: many find that their enterprises…
Computable general equilibrium (CGE) models are widely used for policy-analysis in many countries. In the past a number of CGE models have been developed for South Africa, and used to assess a broad range of policy issues. However, the perceived…
The South African financial sector, defined as the banking, insurance and securities industries, has contributed to the growth of the economy since democracy in terms of growth in assets and value added, although its provision of financial services to the…
The current phase of globalisation, from the mid-1980s to the present, has been characterised by farreaching changes in the global trading system. There have been differential economic gains from participation in the global economy, particularly a) between developed and developing…
Today in South Africa we are witnessing changes that are remaking the country. These changes are in the social, economic and political spheres. Under its democratic government, South Africa committed itself to the principles of free-market economy nearly a decade…
Competition policy is part of the new international orthodoxy in economic policy and, at the same time, was viewed in South Africa as a crucial element of economic transformation. This article reviews the role of competition policy in economic development…
This strategy document endeavours to analyse the South African automotive assembly and components industry's major market and production trends and dynamics as a mechanism for identifying current industry constraints and opportunities/challenges. It is comprised of six sections. Section 1 provides…
Business process outsourcing and offshoring (BPO&O) is a major global trend, with a significant positive impact in developing countries that have the required skills, cost advantage and infrastructure. Over the next 4-5 years, a window of opportunity exists for South…
The South Africa Trade and Poverty Programme (SATPP) provides assistance in a wide range of activities to help South Africa formulate, negotiate and implement pro-poor trade policies. It provides assistance to the private sector and civil society, as well as…
In literature or current economic life, the concept of 'small businesses' often covers different implicit areas of focus. The lack of clarity about what is understood as a small business can affect the reliability of research findings. Not surprisingly, since…
The reform of the telecommunications sector in the mid-1990s had as one of its areas of focus an expansion of access to telecommunications - both at the household ownership and the broader access levels. This paper examines the performance of…
In South Africa, there is an increasing trend towards trading health services, both in the public and in the private health sectors, despite minimal formal liberalisation offered by South Africa under the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). Health…
In economics, the effects of tariff protection and tariff reform remain a contentious, fervently debated issue.1 In South Africa, decades of high tariff protection, of which domestic manufacturing sectors primarily benefited, are being followed by a period of substantial tariff…
As international tariffs are being reduced increased attention is being given to the role of non-tariff measures in impeding trade flows. The working definition of NTMs used in this report is 'government measures other than tariffs that restrict trade flows'.…
The unemployment rate among semi- and unskilled workers in South Africa is over 50%. This high rate can be attributed to various factors, including political decisions of the past, educational inequalities, and poor economic growth. These factors have contributed to…
This paper discusses changes in the regulation of citrus exports from South Africa. It traces the changes from state regulation of the citrus chain to very recent forms of private regulation in the context of highly competitive global markets. The…
This paper investigates South Africa's saving-investment behaviour between 1962 and 2001. The results show that due to the unlimited nature of net capital inflows (foreign debt) from 1962 to 1976, saving and investment were not bound by a long-run solvency…
The overriding objectives of the Nepad programme are economic growth and sustainable development. If it is accepted that trade contributes positively to these objectives, the next question that arises is how to improve African countries' export performance. The ability to…
The first section sketches the well-known argument that there is a potential clash between trade policy reform, employment creation and poverty alleviation in the context of economic integration in Southern Africa. The argument is developed in the wider context of…
In this short report we examine South African trade with Brazil for decade up to 2001. First we look at the absolute values, trends, patterns at the aggregate level and somehow disaggregated level of 22 commodities clusters. The aim of…
South Africa has experienced significant liberalisation during the 1990s on the political as well as economic front. Starting with the first democratic elections in 1994, the economy has undergone liberalisation of internal and external financial markets, labour markets and trade…
Telecommunications services are an important focus for most industrial countries in the current round of trade talks in services. Initial negotiating positions and country requests by these industrial countries all call for full liberalisation of the sector. SADC countries have…
The Cancun Ministerial Conference ended on 14 September after Chairperson Luis Ernesto Derbez concluded that members remained entrenched on the "Singapore" issues. Shortly before 18:00 Cancun time, Mexican Trade Minister Luis Ernesto Derbez formally closed the Fifth Session of the…
The Edge Institute  Intellectual property rights (IPRs) are at the centre of several current policy debates, both nationally and internationally, ranging from music piracy and geographical indications in wine labelling to generic alternatives for patented pharmaceuticals. In order to engage…
Botswana's financial sector is relatively small, reflecting the small size of the market and perhaps the thorough approach to licensing and supervision.  The size of the sector in relation to the economy (as measured by the ratio of broad money…
The Botswana telecommunications sector is made of four major stakeholders. The Botswana Telecommunications Authority (BTA) is the sectors' regulator. The Botswana Telecommunications Corporation (BTC), a government owned company, provides fixed lines. Two private companies, Mascom Wireless and Vista Cellular provide…
Negotiations on the liberalisation of telecommunications form an important part of service negotiations in the Doha Round. The negotiations cover all aspects of the telecoms sector, including fixed line public networks, mobile networks and the full range of value-added network…
This report attempts to provide an overview of South Africa's industrial landscape during the 1990s, focusing on growth and sectoral shares in value-added at a detailed 46-sector level. Use is made of the TIPS South African Standardised Industry Database, which…
Telecommunications services are an important focus for most industrial countries in the current round of trade talks in services. Initial negotiating positions and country requests by these industrial countries all call for full liberalisation of the sector. James Hodge reports…
In this report we make an assessment of the transport sector in Botswana by analyzing policy and performance in the air and road transport sectors. The study had several other objectives among which was to identify reform needs for the…
The international commodity market is increasingly characterized by a fall in the relative value of products mainly due to increased competition. Because of the competitive pressures in the global market place, it is not surprising that exporters from economies that…
This paper will begin by outlining the policy framework that informs EU trade policies and will set out a development perspective that informs the evaluation of EU trade policies. The paper then discusses the issue of adjustment in the EU…
The SADC Free Trade Agreement (FTA) came into effect recently. Periodic examination of intra-SADC trade flows is an important element of monitoring the impact of the FTA.
Of concern to domestic policy makers is that trade between Finland and South Africa is very much biased in favour of the former country. Set against this backdrop, Trade and Investment South Africa (TISA) of the South African Department of…
The Trade Performance Index (TPI) is a tool developed by the International Trade Centre (ITC) for assessing and monitoring the multi-faceted dimensions of export performance and competitiveness of countries and their principal export sectors. At present, the TPI covers 184…
This report attempts to provide an overview of South Africa's industrial landscape during the 1990s, with specific emphasis on growth and sectoral shares in exports at a detailed 46-sector level. If one of the objective of the policies adopted during…
In spite of the trade liberalisation efforts that have characterised the 1990s, it is apparent that imports by the manufacturing sector have remained more or less constant in real terms, whereas imports by agricultural industries have witnessed a decline in…
Only a handful of sectors have shown an increase in their demand for labour, amongst others, Leather Products, Plastic Products, Wood and Wood Products, Wholesale and Retail Trade, Printing and Publishing, Medical Services, Basic Chemicals and Other Chemicals and Television…
The Provincial Economic Intelligence Unit's (PEIU's) objectives are to develop sub-national economic analysis capacity so as to inform Provincial Growth and Development Strategy processes. Western Cape Province Western Cape Provincial Treasury Provincial Economic Review & Outlook 2006 The Western Cape…
The small and medium enterprise (SME) sector in South Africa has been the focus of attention since the first democratic elections in 1994. Not only does the sector offer the opportunity to enhance entrepreneurship amongst previously disadvantaged communities in South…
Policy makers in the public sector are often faced with requests for financial and other support of investment projects and incentive schemes. Frequently, such requests are accompanied by or require economic impact analyses of some sort. Economic impact assessment of…
BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY South Africa has, since 1994, been faced with the double challenges of re-integration into global markets as a global economy, while at the same time positioning itself to realise the high expectations of its populace regarding…
The SADC Free Trade Agreement, which came into being at the beginning of 2000 is up for a mid term review during 2004. The agreement is characterised by complex and restrictive rules of origin. Using references to case studies, Frank…
South Africa's democratic transition now lies close to a decade in the past. The transition carried with it much by way of hopes in terms of greater access by its population, not only to an improved rights environment. It was…
The US Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which was promulgated in October 2000, claims to “move Africans from poverty to prosperity by increasing their economic opportunities.” The Act extends Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) status for qualifying African countries…
Rapid technological change has impacted on the provision of telecommunications in South Africa, as in other countries. The increasing capacity of fibre optic networks, the growing powers of computers, the growth of satellite communications and other broadband developments are major…
This paper discusses one aspect of the somewhat discredited "new economy" namely the impact of information and communication technologies on the growth in volume and diversity of producer services. It provides an analysis of data on developments within transport, communications,…
The government of South Africa comes across clear in enunciating its goals for the reform of public enterprises. According to the Minister of Public Enterprises, “restructuring” is the generic term taken to represent the set of strategies employed by the…
This paper is essentially a scoping exercise to explore the type of issues that might arise for South Africa in WTO energy service negotiations. The background to the current round of negotiations in energy services is explained, including the uncertainties…
This paper assesses the economy-wide impact of implementing and financing a universal or basic income grant (BIG) in South Africa. The various financing scenarios suggested by the proponents of the grant are presented, and these are compared using an applied…
During September 10-14, 2003, WTO members met in Cancun for a mid-term review of the Doha Round of trade negotiations, launched in November 2001. Trade ministers entered the 5th WTO Ministerial divided on agricultural and non-agricultural negotiating modalities, on whether…
Under the Small Enterprise Development (SED) programme, TIPS conducted a number of broad-ranging, qualitative assessments of the outcomes of government's policy, strategy and initiatives in small enterprise development. See all research
The paper reports on the construction and testing of a Standard International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) computable general equilibrium model for South Africa. A 1998 social accounting matrix (SAM) for South Africa is compiled using national accounts information and…
This report is the culmination of a study of the textile and garment industries in the member states of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC). Based on fieldwork mostly done between October 2000 and April 2001, the project produced country…
In this paper, we examine the changing role of trade in South Africa and SADC from different vantage points. We first review progress in liberalizing South Africa's trade regime, and conclude that, while signs of progress are clear, the levels…
The paper puts forward a workable rural development strategy. It shows on which principles, which historical realities and which statistical facts such a strategy should be based. It looks at what the government is doing to promote rural development and…
The reform of the financial sector has been an important component of the structural adjustment programmes pursued by developing countries, whereby reform entails reducing government involvement, freeing up financial markets, and strengtheningfinancial institutions. In Southern Africa, however, the financial systems…
The banking sector in South Africa is highly concentrated. When there is high concentration, it is necessary to examine the effects on efficiency and prices. In this paper, we discuss the fact that there are various types of efficiency in…
Almost immediately after the first democratic election, South African policy makers embraced the policy of trade liberalisation (see Holden 2000). To many observers, the offer made by South Africa to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) has been very generous. Various…
The current economic setting in most Latin American countries suggests that if the small and medium enterprise sector does not perform well during the next couple of decades, overall economic performance will also be unsatisfactory, especially in the areas of…
From the standpoint of labor around the world the problem with globalization is not that it lowers market-determined wages and reduces employment - it is as likely to do the opposite, and which it does will vary from country to…
In most industrialised economies, service sectors do not only show high growth rates of output and employment : they also go through dramatic changes with respect to use of technology, innovation, and regulatory frameworks. Service sector performance becomes more and…
South Africa’s recent integration into the world economy provokes the question about its potential for building competitive advantage and prosperity at the local level in the context of an increasingly globalised economy. The experience of prospering localities in industrialised countries,…
This document has been prepared for the Trade and Industrial Policy Secretariat (TIPS) in light of the imperative for South Africa to prepare its negotiating mandate at the discussions around the World Trade Organisation's (WTO) General Agreement on Trade in…
A narrow unemployment rate of 21.2% and a broad unemployment rate of 36% in 1997 in South Africa indicate a substantial number of working age people who did not work in the last seven days but would accept a job…
It is generally acknowledged that there is no sufficient, exhaustive and elaborate empirical examination of the quantitative impact of policies pertaining to import demand and economic growth in South Africa. In order to arrive at conclusive, sagacious and applicable policies…
The paper aimed to establish the changes that had occurred in the institutional structures governing trade policy in South Africa during the period 1990-1998. It also examined the forces that had influenced the application of tariff policy by the major…
The purpose of this report is to launch a debate on the proposed free trade agreements (FTAs) with Brazil and India by providing some preliminary analysis. Two different but complementary research methodologies have been employed, each of which provides a…
The South African Competition Act of 1998, implemented on 1 September 1999, establishes a range of criteria for evaluating mergers and company practices that are deemed to harm economic efficiency, among other objectives. In particular, the Act prohibits a range…
Low investment levels in the South African economy are consistently identified as the principal factor behind suboptimal growth rates. Despite the increasing recognition of the importance of investment there is relatively little analytical research available in South Africa on the…
The paper utilises data from a survey of plastics firms and six firm case studies to examine the relationships between production and technology changes, and employment. The analysis examines associations between different factors influencing firms in making such changes and…
The purpose of this paper is to assess South Africa’s international price and cost competitiveness, particularly with regard to labor costs, and to examine the quantitative relationships between South African cost competitiveness and tradeperformance. South African export and investment performance…
The studies of Evans (1996, 1997a,b) appear to be the most analytically ambitious attempts to address, empirically, the question of the economic desirability of a southern African free trade area (FTA).  Evans (1996) is apparently the only serious study available…
The aim of this paper is to explore some of the major differences in the ways in which governments influence the process of skill formation. In particular, we focus on the ways in which governments use the market as a…
This paper describes formal employment trends in the South African economy since 1970, through using both survey and time-series data. In addition, the study tries to understand the forces that have shaped these employment trends. The descriptive statistics reveal that…
The aim of this paper is to consider the relationship between competitiveness, international trade and financial factors in the South African economy. The term ‘competitiveness’ is used here in two closely related, but distinctly different, senses. One of these refers…
In the lead-up to the next round of WTO talks, some commentators have argued that developing countries should liberalise their service industries for their own benefit and not just in response to industrial country demands. This paper critically explores this…
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