An Employment-Targeted Economic Program for South Africa

Abstract

This is an independent report produced by a team of international and national consultants supported by the International Poverty Centre in Brasilia (IPC). Initial support for this report w as provided by the Poverty G roup of the United Nations Developm ent Program m e in New York. This report is part of a w ider global research program m e encom passing several other countries. The view s in this report are the authors' and not necessarily IPC's. H ow ever, the IPC regards this report as an im portant contribution to the debate on econom ic policies and em ploym ent program m es in South A frica as w ell as in other countries in A frica.

Is There a Case for Formal Inflation Targeting in Sub-Saharan Africa?

“…A recent study by Rossouw and Padayachee (2009) Excluding the energy component from the CPI does not entirely eliminate the influence of changes in energy prices on inflation. For example, in a study of the component of the CPI for Kenya, using a vector autoregression (VAR) model, Pollin, Githinji, and Heintz (2008) show that a shock to energy prices impacts other components of the CPI. These kinds of interrelationships will likely be evident in other African economies.…”

Communication policies, good governance and development journalism

“…Four recurrent themes remain relevant: (a) strengthening public sector management and accountability; (b) reducing the cost of doing business and improving the investment climate; (c) reducing vulnerability and strengthening communities; and (d) investing in people. Pollin, wa Githinji & Heintz (2007), in their report for the UNDP, emphasise that the need to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger (UN 2007: 1) is conditional to the employment issue: 'A high proportion of people working full time at jobs are still unable to support themselves and their families above a poverty-line level. This is why it is crucial to not simply focus on employment alone, but the quality of employment.'…”

Sectoral Performance in the African Economy - Some Issues and Trends

“…It employs some 70 per cent of the work force and generates on average 30 per cent of Africa's GDP. The overall contribution of agriculture to GDP declined in 2004 due to the low performance of this sector in the North and West African subregions (Pollin et al 2006;Rena 2007).…”