57 research outputs found
Trade openness and foreign direct investment in Africa
Africa’s share of foreign direct investment (FDI) has lagged behind other regions in the world, despite a sharp increase in FDI inflows to the region in 2001. Factors contributing to this circumstance include perceptions of high corruption, weak governance and poor infrastructure. The motivation of this paper is to investigate the impact of openness to trade on the FDI inflow to Africa. In addition to economy-wide trade openness, we also analyse the impact on FDI of openness in manufactured goods, primary commodities and services. The empirical work uses cross-country data from selected African countries observed over four periods: 1980-1985, 1985-1990, 1990- 1995 and 1995-2001. We find that the FDI to GDP ratio responds well to increased openness in the whole economy and in the services sector in particular
Gender inequalities in morbidity : a South African investigation
International studies of gender differences in health status largely
attest that women have worse health conditions than men, which
compromise women’s contribution to economic development. Using
the South African Demographic and Health Survey of 2003, we
investigate whether this disparity also holds in developing countries
such as South Africa. Our results concur with previous findings that
South African women are more likely to suffer from poor health than
men. They also reveal that the health gap is largely driven by a
relatively higher prevalence of health conditions among women, rather
than by the severity of the conditions that they face. Furthermore,
contrary to the common view that the health gap closes with age, we
find that the gap exhibits little variation across age groups and it
persists in old age. This suggests a need for preventive measures to
reduce the occurrence of health conditions in South Africa – which is
vital for economic development.http://www.scimagojr.comam2017School of Public Management and Administration (SPMA
Independent and combined effects of improved water, sanitation, and hygiene, and improved complementary feeding, on child stunting and anaemia in rural Zimbabwe: a cluster-randomised trial.
BACKGROUND: Child stunting reduces survival and impairs neurodevelopment. We tested the independent and combined effects of improved water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH), and improved infant and young child feeding (IYCF) on stunting and anaemia in in Zimbabwe. METHODS: We did a cluster-randomised, community-based, 2 × 2 factorial trial in two rural districts in Zimbabwe. Clusters were defined as the catchment area of between one and four village health workers employed by the Zimbabwe Ministry of Health and Child Care. Women were eligible for inclusion if they permanently lived in clusters and were confirmed pregnant. Clusters were randomly assigned (1:1:1:1) to standard of care (52 clusters), IYCF (20 g of a small-quantity lipid-based nutrient supplement per day from age 6 to 18 months plus complementary feeding counselling; 53 clusters), WASH (construction of a ventilated improved pit latrine, provision of two handwashing stations, liquid soap, chlorine, and play space plus hygiene counselling; 53 clusters), or IYCF plus WASH (53 clusters). A constrained randomisation technique was used to achieve balance across the groups for 14 variables related to geography, demography, water access, and community-level sanitation coverage. Masking of participants and fieldworkers was not possible. The primary outcomes were infant length-for-age Z score and haemoglobin concentrations at 18 months of age among children born to mothers who were HIV negative during pregnancy. These outcomes were analysed in the intention-to-treat population. We estimated the effects of the interventions by comparing the two IYCF groups with the two non-IYCF groups and the two WASH groups with the two non-WASH groups, except for outcomes that had an important statistical interaction between the interventions. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT01824940. FINDINGS: Between Nov 22, 2012, and March 27, 2015, 5280 pregnant women were enrolled from 211 clusters. 3686 children born to HIV-negative mothers were assessed at age 18 months (884 in the standard of care group from 52 clusters, 893 in the IYCF group from 53 clusters, 918 in the WASH group from 53 clusters, and 991 in the IYCF plus WASH group from 51 clusters). In the IYCF intervention groups, the mean length-for-age Z score was 0·16 (95% CI 0·08-0·23) higher and the mean haemoglobin concentration was 2·03 g/L (1·28-2·79) higher than those in the non-IYCF intervention groups. The IYCF intervention reduced the number of stunted children from 620 (35%) of 1792 to 514 (27%) of 1879, and the number of children with anaemia from 245 (13·9%) of 1759 to 193 (10·5%) of 1845. The WASH intervention had no effect on either primary outcome. Neither intervention reduced the prevalence of diarrhoea at 12 or 18 months. No trial-related serious adverse events, and only three trial-related adverse events, were reported. INTERPRETATION: Household-level elementary WASH interventions implemented in rural areas in low-income countries are unlikely to reduce stunting or anaemia and might not reduce diarrhoea. Implementation of these WASH interventions in combination with IYCF interventions is unlikely to reduce stunting or anaemia more than implementation of IYCF alone. FUNDING: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, UK Department for International Development, Wellcome Trust, Swiss Development Cooperation, UNICEF, and US National Institutes of Health.The SHINE trial is funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (OPP1021542 and OPP113707); UK Department for International Development; Wellcome Trust, UK (093768/Z/10/Z, 108065/Z/15/Z and 203905/Z/16/Z); Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation; US National Institutes of Health (2R01HD060338-06); and UNICEF (PCA-2017-0002)
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The employment effect of economic growth: introducing the South African economy
This introductory chapter presents a short review of the progress that the South African economy has made since the economic and financial crisis. It begins by contextualising the three main challenges of unemployment, poverty and inequality bedevilling the economy. The global crisis and its recovery are then contextualised in terms of South Africa. Lastly, the chapter looks at the road ahead and concludes with some predictions for the future. This discussion is meant to set the scene for the chapters in Part 2, which discuss the economy in more detail (Chapters 6-9).
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Understanding the effects of fiscal policy on South Africa
Increased investment spending would decrease the national debt of the country as a percentage of its Gross Domestic Product, reduce government deficit and improve the economic health of the country, says Margaret Chitiga-Mabugu.
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The relevance and possibility of attaining the Millenium Development Goals by 2015 in South Africa
HSRC Policy Brief, JulyThis policy brief, on the relevance and the possibility of attaining the Millennium Development Goals by 2015, is based on various studies carried out by a number of national departments and international organizations. Key among them is a recent study which looks at the economic impact of different options for creating and using fiscal space to attain outstanding Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). In this exercise, which made use of a Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) model, fiscal space was simulated by mobilizing additional revenue (resources) through increased domestic revenue and a number of possible scenarios were drawn up and analysed.
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Are social grants a threat to fiscal sustainability?
The recent global economic crisis once again demonstrated that macroeconomic shocks can cause large and unforeseen losses that are unevenly distributed across the population. As the social grants and security system is one key dimension of individual and social well-being in South Africa, its effectiveness and equity is essential for improving social welfare. But does this pose a risk to the country's fiscal sustainability, ask Ramos Mabugu and Margaret Chitiga-Mabugu.
Human impacts on macrophyte diversity, water quality and some soil properties in the Madikane and Dufuya wetlands of Lower Gweru, Zimbabwe
This study investigated how the exploitation of wetlands, locally known as dambos, changes their vegetation composition, soil properties and how that in-turn affects the water quality. We therefore compared diversity and soil conditions between a protected (Madikane) and exploited (Dufuya) dambo impacted by communal agriculture and grazing in Lower Gweru, Zimbabwe. Species diversity was higher in Madikane (H′=2.52) than Dufuya (H′=2.14). Species that were present in Madikane indicated a permanent or semi-permanent wetness compared to species tolerant to arid conditions, reflecting disturbance in Dufuya. Dambo utilization also indicated a change in dominance from perennials to annuals and an increase in exotic species. There was no significant difference in the physical structure of the soil between the rather pristine and exploited sites (% clay and % silt, p>0.05). A significant difference was recorded in the chemical properties of the soil (pH, phosphorus, nitrate-N, ammonium-N and organic carbon content). Water quality was good in the protected dambo than the exploited dambo as indicated by the differences in calcium ions and conductivity. The protection of wetlands is shown to be important in conserving biological diversity
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