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Policy Briefs

13 March 2017

Electricity supply in South Africa: Path dependency or decarbonisation?

  • Year 2017
  • Author(s) Gaylor Montmasson-Clair, Senior Economist: Sustainable Growth
Renewable energy technologies have experienced an exponential growth in South Africa, thanks to the procurement of large-scale power plants. However, South Africa’s electricity sector still lacks a level playing field. Significant vested interests have maintained overwhelming support for centralised, coal-based electricity generation, preventing the development of renewable energy technologies to…
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22 February 2017

A practical agenda for reducing technical barriers to trade in SADC

  • Year 2017
  • Author(s) Christopher Wood, TIPS Economist
This policy brief provides context for technical regulation in the region. It then offers some cross-cutting solutions for developing monitoring mechanisms that can allow policymakers to identify problem areas, and some specific interventions for the Standards, Accreditation and Metrology functions that can build capacity at low cost. It provides some…
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12 December 2016

South Africa’s trade and investment relationship with the United States post-AGOA

  • Year 2016
  • Author(s) Faizel Ismail
This policy brief considers the three main options available to South Africa in a post-AGOA trade and investment relationship with the United States: to stay in AGOA, negotiate a Free Trade Agreement, or fall back on Most Favoured Nation terms and the Generalized System of Preferences.
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26 August 2016

Debates on the sugar tax

  • Year 2016
  • Author(s) Neva Makgetla
The National Treasury proposed 20% tax on sugary soft drinks derives from the National Department of Health strategy to reduce obesity. It is rooted in the scientific consensus that these kinds of drinks are a key factor behind rising obesity and the attendant ailments of diabetes, heart disease and some…
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04 July 2016

Opportunities for strategic intervention in the South African agricultural sector: Trade and employment

  • Year 2016
  • Author(s) Blessing Chipanda
There is scope for a number of strategic interventions by the South African government to support agro-industrial production. These could make a significant difference to the country’s foreign trade and its domestic employment record. This policy brief outlines the potential impact that a more labour-intensive agriculture sector, which is also…
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13 May 2016

The jobs bloodbath that wasn’t: What happened to employment in the first quarter of 2016?

  • Year 2016
  • Author(s) Neva Makgetla
The latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) reported that the country lost a total of 355 000 jobs from the last quarter of 2015 to the first quarter of 2016, for an astonishing 2,2% decline in a single quarter. But the figures seem unreliable, due at least in part to the…
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18 April 2016

Revised IMF growth forecasts

  • Year 2016
  • Author(s) Neva Makgetla
In its latest World Economic Outlook, the IMF revised downward its growth forecast for most countries and for the world as a whole. This note briefly reviews some of the key revisions. 
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30 March 2016

Maximising niche markets: South African abalone

  • Year 2016
  • Author(s) Gillian Chigumira
Aquaculture is the fastest growing food producing sector in the world, and although abalone contributes a relatively small proportion to aquaculture, it is one of the most highly prized seafood delicacies and most sought-after invertebrate. With high returns, farmed, fished or ranched abalone is able to generate foreign currency earnings…
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29 March 2016

A developmental systems approach to agro-processing policy

  • Year 2016
  • Author(s) Tracy Ledger
Agro-processing is an increasingly important market access point for agricultural producers. The development of the agro-processing sector thus has significant potential to create opportunities for smaller agricultural producers, thereby supporting the creation of new employment and livelihood opportunities in rural areas. However, market access points are not homogenous from the…
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16 March 2016

Eskom’s regulatory clearing account submission for 2013/14

  • Year 2016
  • Author(s) Neva Makgetla
Responses to Eskom’s request for compensation for additional costs and for lower than expected sales in 2013/4 should be designed to support industrialisation. From this standpoint, the regulator’s response to Eskom’s proposals should take into account the following. Eskom should be guaranteed compensation for the cost of diesel and other…
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