Isaah Mhlanga on SA’s Budget Speech: adopting a business-friendly approach
After the challenges raised by Covid-19 and the increasing risks concerning South Africa’s fiscal sustainability, there were three objectives that the Finance Minister’s Budget Speech ought to have addressed. Following on from a previous podcast, this podcast explores whether or not these objectives as well as the expectations of South Africans, were met. Once again, […]
Measurement and analysis of the evolution of institutions in Nigeria
“Institutions matter” has become a generally accepted premise in development economics. The growth and development problems in Nigeria are also common knowledge. To better understand these problems a proper characterization of institutions in Nigeria is essential. Conducting empirical test of the role of institutions in Nigeria’s growth and development can prove challenging due to lack of institutional data set […]
The Impact of Basic and Social Infrastructure Investment on Economic Growth and Social Development in South Africa’s Urban and Rural Municipalities
Basic and social infrastructure investment can assist in addressing widespread inequality and divided societies by promoting economic growth and social development. The aim of this study is to determine whether basic and social infrastructures investment differently affect economic growth and social development indicators of urban and rural municipalities. We used a balanced panel dataset containing […]
Path dependence and interdependence between institutions and development
Path dependence theory, within the institutions context, means that the path of institutions promulgated within a system historically determines the nature of institutions that will ensue within the same system in the present and in the future. The paper makes use of a newly constructed index of institutions quality, and addresses three related questions; the […]
What church records can tell us about economic development
Because colonial sources often lack adequate information about the lived experience of Africans, quantitative economic historians that are interested in the African experience are forced to find creative ways to identify the effects of colonial policies. Church records at the individual level provide one such recourse.
Financial Structure and Economic Development in Africa
This paper explores the relationship between economic development and financial structure: that is, whether the degree of financial system structure matter for pace and character of economic development in 15 African countries for the period of 1995 to 2011. The paper utilizes the fixed effect instrument variable technique for econometric estimation. None of the financial […]
Financial Development and the Diffusion of Technologies under Uncertainty in Africa
Using novel measures of technology diffusion and adoption developed by Comin and Hobijn (2012), we examine the role of finance in the timing of adoption and the diffusion of thirteen sectoral technologies in 44 Sub-Saharan Africa countries. These technologies cover sectors such as agriculture, communication and information technology, industry, and transport. The results show that […]
Effects of Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Education on Conflict Intensity in Africa
This study investigates the impact of different dimensions of schooling education (primary, secondary and tertiary enrolment) on the intensity of intra-state conflicts in Africa during 1989-2008. It uses fixed-effects regressions in a panel framework and annual data for 25 African countries. Parameter estimates provide clear evidence that schooling education (irrespective of the dimension considered) reduces […]
Alternative indices of political freedoms, property rights, and political instability for Zambia
This paper presents new institutional measures for Zambia. Coverage is of political rights and freedoms, of property rights, and of political instability. The sample period is from 1947 to 2007. Comparison of the indices with directly comparable Zimbabwean and Malawian series, shows strong sources of divergence in institutional conditions. The paper also considers interaction amongst […]
ERSA Training & Networking Workshop
Assessing Future Economic Developments and Policy Evaluation using Aggregate Dynamic Macroeconomic Models: Methods and Applications, May 12-14, 2009, University of the Witwatersrand. This workshop is being jointly hosted by the Department of Economics and Econometrics, University of Johannesburg and the School of Economics and Business Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand.
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