Telecentres for sustainable rural development : review and case study of a South African rural telecentre

This paper evaluates a South African rural telecentre that may serve as a ‘best practice’ model. The paper first provides a brief literature review of telecentres and the role of information and communication technology in economic development. A qualitative evaluation of a case study is presented within the context of sustainability considerations and development outcomes; that is, showing how the telecentre has improved the lives of the rural community at Thabina. Some of the observed economic development impacts are listed in the paper and an attempt is made to capture the essence of the vital links between the use of information and communication technology (technology transfer), human development, education and economic development.http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/cdsa20hb201

Modellering van kennisverbruik in die graan en oliesade sektore van Suid-Afrika

A Partial Equilibrium (PE) model is developed to model fertiliser use in the grain crop and oilseed sectors to assess the impact of changes in the physical and economic environment on production and fertiliser use. Since the adoption of a policy of trade liberalisation and the shift towards a free market for agricultural products, the actual cropping patterns of grain crops have moved closer to the expected optimum production pattern. It is shown that the total area cultivated will decrease by 2,4 percent. Results show that except for the area under sunflower (that remains unchanged) and yellow maize that increases, the area utilised by other crops will decrease. Fertiliser use is directly correlated with production patterns in the provinces. A comparison of the base-case scenario and optimum solution revealed that the movement from a base to an optimum solution results in a drop in total area cultivated, production and exports. Fertiliser use correspondingly decreases.'n Parsiële Ewewigsmodel is ontwikkel om kunsmisverbruik in die graan en oliesade sektore te modelleer en om die impak van veranderinge in die fisiese en ekonomiese omgewings op produksie en kunsmisverbruik te bepaal. Sedert die aanvarding en implementering van 'n beleid van handelsliberalisering en 'n vryemark vir landbouprodukte het die werklike produksiepatrone nader beweeg na die verwagte optimum produksiepatroon. Resultate toon dat die totale area onder bewerking met 2.4 persent sal daal, en dat behalwe vir sonneblomproduksie waar die area benut word onveranderd sal bly, dat dié van geelmielies sal toeneem en dat die area benut deur ander gewasse sal afneem. Kunsmisverbruik is direk gekorreleerd met produksiepatrone in die provinsies. 'n Vergelyking van die basisgeval scenario en die optimale oplossing toon aan dat 'n beweging vanaf die basis na 'n optimale oplossing 'n daling in die totale area onder bewerking, produksie en uitvoere sal veroorsaak. Kunsmisverbruik sal dienooreenkomstig afneem.Article was written before M.C. Breitenbach joined the University of Pretoria.http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/ragr20hj2020Economic

Quantifying shifts in primary factor demand in the South African economy

This article uses a dynamic CGE model to explain the persistence in the high levels of unemployment in the South African economy in spite of modest to relatively strong output growth. We make use of a historical simulation for the period 2006 to 2013 and find that the capital-labour ratio increased despite a relative increase in the rental price of capital. Classical economic theory suggests that changes in industry preferences toward capital and labour lead to adjusted capital-labour ratios. We quantify the changes in industry factor preferences during this period and highlight their impact in explaining observed labour market outcomes. Other changes in the economy over this period are also quantified.A grant from Economic Research Southern Africa.http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/cdsa202017-08-31hb2017Economic

Exploring the moderating role of financial development in environmental Kuznets curve for South Africa: fresh evidence from the novel dynamic ARDL simulations approach

DATA AVAILABILITY : The data relevant to this research is publicly available from the World Development Indicators or obtained from the authors by making a reasonable request.The extant literature has produced mixed evidence on the relationship between fnancial development and ecological sustainability. This work addresses this conundrum by investigating fnancial development’s direct and indirect consequences on ecological quality utilizing the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) methodological approach. Our empirical analysis is based on the novel dynamic autoregressive distributed lag simulations approach for South Africa between 1960 and 2020. The results, which used fve distinct fnancial development measures, demonstrate that fnancial development boosts ecological integrity and environmental sustainability over the long and short terms. In the instance of South Africa, we additionally confrm the validity of the EKC theory. More importantly, the outcomes of the indirect channels demonstrate that fnancial development increases energy usage’s role in causing pollution while attenuating the detrimental impacts of economic growth, trade openness, and foreign direct investment on ecological quality. Moreover, the presence of an inadequate fnancial system is a requirement for the basis of the pollution haven hypothesis (PHH), which we examine using trade openness and foreign direct investment variables. PHH for both of these variables disappears when fnancial development crosses specifed thresholds. Finally, industrial value addition destroys ecological quality while technological innovation enhances it. This research provides some crucial policy recommendations and fresh perspectives for South Africa as it develops national initiatives to support ecological sustainability and reach its net zero emissions goal.https://jfin-swufe.springeropen.comEconomic

Revisiting the nexus between fiscal decentralization and CO2 emissions in South Africa : fresh policy insights

DATA AVAILABILITY: The data relevant to this research is publicly available from the World Development Indicators or obtained from the authors by making a reasonable request.The argument over fscal decentralization and carbon dioxide emission (CO2) reduction has received much attention. However, evidence to back this claim is limited. Economic theory predicts that fscal decentralization afects environmental quality, but the specifics of this relationship are still up for debate. Some scholars noted that fscal decentralization might lead to a race to the top, whereas others contended that it would result in a race to the bottom. In light of the current debates in environmental and development economics, this study aims to provide insight into how this relationship may function in South Africa from 1960 to 2020. In contrast to the existing research, the present study uses a novel dynamic autoregressive distributed lag simulation approach to assess the positive and negative changes in fscal decentralization, scale efect, technique efect, technological innovation, foreign direct investment, energy consumption, industrial growth, and trade openness on CO2 emissions. The following are the main fndings: (i) Fiscal decentralization had a CO2 emission reduction impact in the short and long run, highlighting the presence of the race to the top approach. (ii) Economic growth (as represented by the scale efect) eroded ecological integrity. However, its square (as expressed by technique efect) aided in strengthening ecological protection, validating the environmental Kuznets curve hypothesis. (iii) CO2 emissions were driven by energy utilization, trade openness, industrial value-added, and foreign direct investment, whereas technological innovation boosted ecological integrity. Findings suggest that further fscal decentralization should be undertaken through further devolution of power to local entities, particularly regarding environmental policy issues, to maintain South Africa’s ecological sustainability. South Africa should also establish policies to improve environmental sustainability by strengthening a lower layer of government and clarifying responsibilities at the national and local levels to fulfill the energy-saving functions of fiscal expenditures.https://jfin-swufe.springeropen.comEconomic

Why so much pessimism about economic integration in Africa? The case of the Southern African development community

African economic integration initiatives have been judged by models and theoretical concepts developed outside Africa. Findings from such unrealistic and simplified models, rather than augment the continental initiatives, often create pessimism among stakeholders in the continent and outside. Hence, this paper emphasizes the fact that integration attempts should be evaluated in the context of their objectives, and the political, economic, and institutional setups in which they operate. To understand the economic integration dynamics in Africa and other developing regions, our sets of analysis should go beyond the common approaches which are based on optimum currency area (OCA) theory and experiences pertinent to north-north monetary integration. African countries need to adopt an alternative model that make the integration initiatives less costly and engender pessimism. Empowering citizens and stakeholders to make informed decisions may also reduce the existing pessimism about a Pan-African Economic Community initiative.The fifteen countries that make up the SADC are Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of Congo, Lesotho, Malawi, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.https://journals.co.za/content/journal/aa_ajber2020-09-302020-09-01am2020Economic

Is SADC an optimal currency area? Evidence from the generalized purchasing power parity test

In this paper we investigate the likelihood of a proposed monetary union in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) from the view point of the generalized purchasing power parity (GPPP) hypothesis and optimum currency area theory. We apply Johansen’s multivariate co-integration technique. The findings from this study confirm that GPPP holds among SADC member countries included in this study on account of cointegration and stationarity in real exchange rate series. South African rand normalized long run beta coefficients of all the real exchange rates are below one except in the case of the Mauritian rupee and all bear negative signs except in the case of the Angolan New Kwanza and Mauritian rupee. This is evidence that supports monetary union in the region except for Angola and Mauritius. Moreover, the panel cointegration tests also confirm the cointegration among real exchange rate series of SADC countries. However, the absolute magnitudes of the short run adjustment coefficients of SADC countries’ real exchange rates are low and bear positive signs in some cases. This finding implies that the observed slow speed of adjustment for (log) real exchange rate of SADC member states might constrain the effectiveness of stabilization policies in the wake of external shocks, rendering SADC countries vulnerable to macroeconomic instability in the region. This result has important policy implications for the proposed monetary union in SADC.Economic Research Southern Africa (ERSA)http://link.springer.com/journal/10644hj2020Economic

Efficiency of healthcare systems in the first wave of COVID-19 - a technical efficiency analysis

In this novel paper, we make use of a non-parametric method known as Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) to analyse the 31 most infected countries during the first 100 days since the outbreak of the COVID-19 coronavirus for the efficiency in containing the spread of the virus – a question yet to be answered in the literature. Our model showed 12 of the 31 countries in our sample were efficient and 19 inefficient in the use of resources to manage the flattening of their COVID-19 contagion curves. Among the worst performers were some of the richest countries in the world, Germany, Canada, the USA and Austria, with efficiency between 50 and 60 per cent - more inefficient than Italy, France and Belgium, who were some of those hardest hit by the spread of the virus.https://www.iki.bas.bg/en/economic-studies-journal-0am2022Economic

A comparative analysis of currency volatility among BRICS countries

In recent years, exchange rates of the BRICS countries have all experienced periods of high volatility. Thus far, no study has simultaneously compared the volatility of the BRICS currencies and analyzed the dependence and causal structure of relative volatility of these peer currencies. We addressed this issue by using monthly data from January 1995 to January 2017. We find that:(i) Brazil, India and China are more competitive than South Africa, on average, while South Africa, in turn, is only more competitive than Russia;(ii) the rand has been more volatile than the Brazilian real and the Russian ruble, but less volatile than the Chinese renminbi and the Indian rupee; (iii) there are inter-currency volatility correlations among the real, renminbi, ruble, and rand;(iv) the renminbi return volatility causes return volatility in the real, ruble, and rand.http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/wjab202020-09-27hj2020Economic

Exchange rate misalignment and economic growth : evidence from nonlinear panel cointegration and Granger causality tests

The importance of exchange rate in an economy can be seen in the various policies implemented to manage its level and evolution on a daily basis. A large body of literature has analyzed the impact of exchange rate, or its deviation from certain equilibrium, on economic growth. The correlation between exchange rate undervaluation and economic growth is among the most investigated open macroeconomics topics. However, the question is ”does exchange rate undervaluation truly growth enhancing? The purpose of this study is to analyze the impact of exchange rate misalignment on economic growth for a sample of emerging economies from 1970 to 2014 using a panel smooth transition regression (PSTR) vector error correction model. Besides, we provide a Granger causality test conducted in a non-linear framework. We find that a rise in misalignment increases significantly output in the short-run when currencies are close to equilibrium. When they are highly misaligned, the impact on growth is reduced. However, no significant impact of output on misalignment was found in the short-run. We provide evidence that misalignment Granger causes output at any given level of misalignment both in the short and long-run. A weaker Granger causality was found between output and misalignment. This raises some important implications. Although emerging economies can use undervaluation as a growth strategy, the benefits are smaller the larger the undervaluation. There is therefore an incentive to keep exchange rates closer to their equilibriumhttp://www.degruyter.com/view/j/sndeam2018Economic