Policy Papers

In developing countries, where health insurance is not a commonly purchased financial instrument, recent debates have revolved around extending health insurance coverage to a wider range of the population, primarily via compulsory insurance schemes. However, these debates rarely consider the...

South Africa’s growth experience provides an example of how contrasting growth trends - long-term decline followed by improved growth - pivot around political change, in this case a transition to democracy. In the decade prior to 1994, South Africa experienced the worst period of economic growth...

Tobacco advertising bans have become commonplace in developed nations but are less prevalent in developing countries. The importance of advertising bans as part of comprehensive tobacco control strategies has been emphasised by the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control which calls for...

This paper provides a broad overview of the relationship between infrastructure and growth, focusing on the South African case. The paper develops an intuitive theoretical framework in which to analyse this relationship, identifying five specific channels through which infrastructure may effect...

One of the most visible forms of unemployment is the men who stand at the side of the road or on corners every day, waiting for any job that may come their way. Blaauw, Louw and Schenck (2006) estimated that there are nearly 1000 places in South Africa where people are picked up and a minimum of...

This paper investigates the bias and dispersion in official revisions of eight national accounting growth rates. The growth in GDP, consumption expenditure and personal disposable income by households has been subject to significant upward revisions and bias, especially after 1994. No significant...

This paper examines the importance of courts for trade credit amongst manufacturing firms in the East African community (EAC). The paper finds that high enforcement costs do not deter the use of courts to settle disputes associated with trade credit. The analysis suggests that when courts function...

Through 43 years of history, this study identifies proximate causes of aggregate volatility in South Africa, the obstacles to managing those volatility risks, and suggests how the country can harness globalization to strengthen financial institutions in order to manage risks better. Macroeconomic...

The paper provides a first systematic, comprehensive benchmarking of South Africa's infrastructure performance in four major sectors - electricity, water and sanitation, information and communication technology, and transportation - against the relevant group of comparator countries using a new...

Achieving high levels of school quality is difficult everywhere. Aspects of the recent experience of the United States are reviewed, with special attention paid to incentive issues. Statistical evidence on school enrolments since 1980 is presented as a background to resource reallocation since 1994...