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Youth unemployment continues to be a burden and concern for the South African government. Being economically insecure, the situation is dire with the government needing to provide resources to a population who should be economically independent. There is a need to look at the social determinants of economic insecurity among youth in South Africa. Family formations could either promote or inhibit economic well-being. This article aims to assess whether economic security improves as youth enter into unions and/or have children. The South African National Income Dynamics Study is used. Unmarried youth with no children are measured at baseline (2008) and followed up over time to examine whether economic security status changes as union status changes. Results show that while economic security, employment (from 7.61% to 25.67%) and net income per month (from 19.48% to 32.79%) increase over time, youth who marry but have no children have the lowest risk of economic insecurity (relative risk ratio = 0.02, p < 0.05) compared with those who remain unmarried but have children. Special attention needs to be given to youth who have children and are unmarried and among those who marry and have children soon after. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Recent work has shown that the gender gap in income poverty has widened in post-apartheid South Africa even though overall poverty levels have declined. One of the main criticisms of money-metric studies of gendered poverty differences is that income is only one dimension of poverty and that other measures of welfare may better reflect the relative well-being of women and female-headed households. This article presents a multidimensional approach to measuring the gender poverty gap in post-apartheid South Africa. Using data from the 2008 wave of the South African National Income Dynamic Study, the internationally comparable multidimensional poverty index (the MPI) is used to estimate gender differences in a number of different achievements. The findings suggest that the multidimensional gender poverty gap is similar to the poverty gap measured by the conventional money-metric approach at several national poverty lines. However, the MPI poverty differential between female- and male-headed households is slightly narrower than the income poverty gap between these two household types. In order to explore these findings further, the paper decomposes the components of multidimensional poverty by gender and for both female- and male-headed households. The paper concludes by considering how greater investments in health care delivery and in basic services, particularly in rural areas, may yield progress towards gender equality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this article is a theoretical one, namely to make the case for a critical-reflectivist approach to the study of regionalism in Africa and beyond. We argue that contemporary changes in the global political economy require political economists to reconsider how we study regional processes and actors. The article provides insights into the sociology of the field of study by recounting its evolution, reviewing key debates and tracing the dominance of rationalist theories on regional integration and regionalism. Subsequently, the article questions the ontological premises of state-centrism and market logics in conventional regional theorization that does not take account of the complexities and multidimensionality of regions and regional processes. Traditional approaches to regionalism fail to do justice to regional manifestations and the repercussions of Africa's changing transnational relations as well as to crucial dynamics within regional civil societies. In this respect, the analytical value of both Robert W. Cox's World Order Approach (WOA) and the New Regionalism(s) Approach (NRA) for challenging the theoretical hegemony in the field of study is elaborated on. The theoretical framework proposed in this article points to neglected dimensions of regionalization and stresses both structural factors as well as the myriad of regional actors and their respective regional strategies as drivers of the changing nature of developing regionalisms in Africa. The authors' claim that regionalism is everything but a ‘states only’ domain is substantiated by the proposed conceptualization of regional civil society, a persistent analytical ‘blind spot’ in the study of regionalism. Drawing eclectically on the WOA and the NRA, the article provides a theoretical ‘entry-point’ for the analytical incorporation of regional civil societies into the political economy of African regionalisms. The article concludes by arguing that analytical and theoretical sensitivity to potentially transformative societal actors and processes at the regional level becomes increasingly relevant in the context of shared experiences of neoliberal globalization/regionalization as well as of Africa's new ‘partnerships’ with emerging powers. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article critiques the increasing claims in scholarly and diplomatic circles of a putative South African hegemony in Africa. On the backdrop of the recalibration of Nigeria's GDP making it Africa's largest economy, there have been counter arguments that South Africa's regional influence is dwindling as a result of its staggering economy among other domestic impediments. In this paper, I take the position that although South Africa's capacity to fulfil a hegemonic role may be hindered by internal and external ambivalences, these factors do not in any way disqualify the country from playing a hegemonic role. I conclude by making the assertion that our regional understanding of hegemony in the African context must be one that operates beyond the realm of the preponderant material capabilities of a state into reasonable measures of ideational characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The plague of inflation eating into investor returns is one that is experienced universally by all investors. Gold has historically proven to provide good inflationary hedging ability, due to its appreciating prices in times of high inflation. However, the recent period of price depreciation from 2012 amidst rising inflation in South Africa, has brought its usefulness as a hedge into question. The purpose of this study is therefore to thoroughly examine the use of gold as an inflationary hedge in the South African environment. In South Africa, the problem of inflation is a particularly severe one, with inflation rates reaching double figures periodically. The necessity of a hedge against inflation is therefore imperative to South African investors, to mitigate their diminishing real returns. The study extends over the period of 2000 - 2014, to incorporate for the Monetary Policy Committee in South Africa's introduction of the inflation targeting regime. In South Africa, there are two popular alternatives when purchasing gold - one is gold bullion, whilst the other is known as the Krugerrand. The Krugerrand is minted from 22 carat gold, and is a popular vehicle for private gold investment in South Africa - and therefore easily accessed by both private and institutional investors. We therefore utilized both gold and the krugerrand as possible hedges in order to evaluate whether there is any difference in their respective hedging ability, and in particular, which one is more appropriate. We also decomposed inflation into the different types, which are: actual, expected, and unexpected inflation. Testing was conducted on the data over both the short run and long run, by making use of OLS regressions for the short run analysis, and Johansen's Cointegration for the long run analysis. The results of the short run statistical tests found that whilst both gold and the krugerrand were found to be statistically significant against unexpected inflation, their sign was negative - which indicate that when unexpected inflation increases, the gold price decreases, which is contrary to the way in which a hedge should perform. The long run analysis found that both gold and the krugerrand were able to hedge against both actual and unexpected inflation, but not anticipated inflation. The results overall also found that gold had the superior hedging ability from the two alternatives. This may indicate that for investors who are concerned with the long run effects of inflation on their portfolios, they can include gold as a potential hedge against its negative effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we examine the design of transfer systems, focusing on the Provincial Equitable Share (PES) in the Republic of South Africa. Provinces in South Africa have been assigned a wide range of responsibilities. Because provinces are almost completely reliant on transfers from the central government, the design of the PES is of critical importance, especially in its ability to achieve the goal of "equalization" across provinces. Our specific conclusion is that the PES largely fails in its efforts to equalize across provinces. Our more general conclusion that follows from this is that the PES attempts to achieve too many conflicting goals, and so it necessarily fails to achieve all goals equally or well, especially its ability to equalize. We conclude with suggestions for ways to reform the PES to better achieve the goal of equalization, lesson that also apply to other countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the political economy of energy transition in South Africa. An economic model based around a powerful ‘minerals-energy complex’ that has previously been able to provide domestic and foreign capital with cheap and plentiful coal-generated electricity is no longer economically or environmentally sustainable. The paper analyses the struggle over competing energy visions, infrastructures and political agendas in order to generate insights into the governance and financing of clean energy transitions in South Africa. It provides both a rich empirical account of key policy developments aimed at enabling such a transition and provides reflections on how best to theorise the contested politics of energy transitions. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In South Africa, local economic development has become the focus to overcome obstacles such as low skills, low entrepreneurial culture, weak support mechanisms, and spatial marginalisation, which lead to high unemployment and poverty. With conventional approaches having little effect, local communities are looking for innovative approaches to their economic challenges. PACA methodology prepares an action-oriented diagnostic of the local economy to initiate economic development initiatives. It mobilises local stakeholders to take an active role through fast analysis and action learning. This article assesses how the PACA approach implemented by George Municipality was applied, and what advantages and limitations were experienced. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The port sectors in a country play an important role in its economy. This paper presents an input-output analysis on how the port sectors impact a concerned economy using the South African case. Moreover, this paper reports how a rectangular Supply and Use Table system of national accounts can be converted to a traditional square symmetric matrix type system. A range of models, such as demand-driven, supply-driven and price models, were derived for the estimation. From these models, the production effect together with the forward and backward linkage effects, price change effects and employment effects were estimated to determine the impact of port sectors. The overall forward linkage effect of the port sector was 0.97 and the backward one was 0.48, indicating that the port sector does not appear to use other sectors much in producing its activities whereas the port sector is used relatively more by other industries owing to its relatively high forward linkage effect. The overall impact effect of the port sector per unit shortage on all other products was found to be 1.1705. Therefore, one unit shortage in the port sector would have incurred a 17% loss to the entire economy in 2002. Leontief׳s price model was used for the scenario that what would occur if the price of port sector׳s cost was increased by various ranges from 5%, 10% and 30% to 50% and 100%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A growing body of research on informal settlements considers the experiences of children, but seldom outlines the daily parenting experiences of adult men and women. At the same time, policy on housing in South Africa points to the ways in which the 'eradication' of informal housing will help provide children with better futures. This article explores the social relation of parenting within an informal settlement in Durban, South Africa, bearing in mind the broader difficulties of parenting in poverty, and points to ways in which the material qualities of informal settlements contribute to feelings of anxiety in parents. It questions how these experiences might differ from or be similar to those of parents who live in generic contexts of poverty (but not necessarily informality). It concludes ultimately that living in an informal settlement does actually contribute to particular parental anxieties, but that there is no guarantee that informal housing eradication will remove these concerns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For a sample of South African firms, this paper analyzes the relationships of firm performance and a set of organizational measures which includes organizational culture and climate, market orientation and innovativeness. These organizational measures are drawn from three different disciplines-organizational behavior, strategy and economics. The replicative study is framed in an extended model of competing organizational values which have been used in 13 countries including three transition economies (Vietnam, China and Russia). The work has also been done under a variety of conditions-for example, the US in a period of study growth, Thailand during the Asian Crisis and Hong Kong after the handover to China. Comparisons are made between South African results and those of firms from a group of five industrial countries. Market Orientation is the most important explainer of performance of the South African firms, and Innovativeness is also important. Specific elements of Organizational Culture are apparently less important in South Africa than elsewhere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay focuses on how the actions of an apathetic bureaucracy can ruin the lives of individuals and communities, particularly those that are poor and marginalized, for which they are responsible to serve. The impoverished state of South Africa is used as an example to illustrate how it should be a priority of bureaucrats. The author also looks at examples of ineffective bureaucracy, like South Africa's social assistance grant system and its fruitlessness, an apparently mis-managed cost-recovery system for tap water which resulted in a cholera outbreak. Also looked at are the consequences of an extreme delay in processing identity documents for an individual by the South African Department of Home Affairs. Researcher David Sanders is also mentioned.

This study identifies sources of risk that commercial sugarcane farmers in the province of KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), South Africa, presently perceive to pose the greatest threat to the viability of their businesses. Sugarcane contributes approximately 82% of the income from field crops in KZN, with 72% of the crop planted by large-scale growers. Data obtained in 2006 via structured personal interviews of 76 large-scale sugarcane farmers from a stratified random sample of 110 farmers in two separate mill-supply areas of KZN were used to elicit farmers' perceptions of various sources of risk. The most important risk sources were found to be the threat posed by land reform, minimum wage legislation and the variability of the sugar price, in that order. Land reform and minimum wage legislation did not feature prominently in past studies of KZN farmers during the 1990s. Factor analysis identified additional risk dimensions that exist within the remaining risk sources. Regional differences between the two study areas were also evident. Recommendations include that government improve accessibility to information regarding future plans for land and labour policies, and that farmers become more proactive in terms of obtaining information to reduce uncertainty and resultant efficiency barriers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Shows how different political economies influenced the availability of resources, empowerment, existence and survival of the people of Mier, a frontier society in the harsh environment of the Kalahari Desert of South Africa. Location, climate and habitat of Mier; Historical background of Mier; Different articulations with various consequences of the process of transition from one type of political economy to another; Conclusion.

Looks at the importance of institutions in shaping the economic development of South Africa. Three general types of exchange in the evolution of political and economic institutions; Features of the South African economic development; Compatibility of South Africa's institutional framework with the degree of growth.

Reports that the `World Competitiveness Report 1995' reveals that South Africa's position has fallen. Categories which South Africa ranked in; Similarities between South Africa and India.