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91. A Review of Public and Private Investment in South Africa

Author:
Garikai Makuyana and Nicholas M. Odhiambo
Publication Date:
07-2016
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
The Rest: Journal of Politics and Development
Institution:
Centre for Strategic Research and Analysis (CESRAN)
Abstract:
The paper aims to put the limelight on the growth dynamics of public and private investment in South Africa from the apartheid period through to 2012. With the adopted inward-looking growth policy during the apartheid, massive economic infrastructure public investment stimulated private investment. Growth buoyancy of private investment continued with the implementation of the market system in 1994, complemented by the core infrastructure growth. While the South African investment climate is considered to be competitive, at least in comparison to other African economies, there are areas that still need further improvement to unlock higher investment growth potential that includes non-all-inclusive infrastructure.
Topic:
Apartheid, Infrastructure, Economic Growth, Investment, Public Sector, and Private Sector
Political Geography:
Africa and South Africa

92. Competitiveness - Catching the Next Wave: Africa

Author:
Oxford Economics
Publication Date:
06-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Oxford Economics
Abstract:
The pace of growth in sub-Saharan Africa could easily surpass most regions of the world. This report examines the industries with potential to fuel this growth and development over the next two decades, as well as central infrastructure and policy issues, focusing on South Africa, with additional analysis provided for Kenya and Nigeria.
Topic:
Infrastructure, Population, and Population Growth
Political Geography:
Kenya, Africa, South Africa, and Nigeria

93. The quality of public services: An intrinsic factor in Ghanaian evaluations of government performance

Author:
Daniel Armah-Attoh
Publication Date:
07-2015
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Afrobarometer
Abstract:
The provision of public goods and services is an important aspect of socioeconomic development. Access to basic services such as clean water and sanitation, health care, schooling, and transportation enhances citizens’ well-being. Access to roads and telecommunications systems lowers transaction costs, leading to improvements in trade and economic activities (Xu, 2013). In spite of the importance of public services to individuals and nations, the World Bank’s World Development Report (2004) found large variations in the quality and quantity of public goods and services across developing countries and within countries. In most African countries, including Ghana, providing public services is a huge challenge for the state, which is traditionally seen as solely responsible for the production and distribution of these services. In practice, given scarce resources and management challenges, the state alone often cannot provide these services at levels that match rapid population growth, development, and urbanization. In Ghana, attempts at adopting a public-private partnership approach for the delivery of some public services has met with apprehension by citizens who fear the consequences of profit-seeking private-sector entities producing or distributing these essential public goods. With the government left to play the primary provider role, citizens continue to have difficulties accessing vital public services because of a lack of service facilities or inadequate service quantity or quality. Quality has been an important focus of management models used by service providers in developed countries since the 1980s. Notable among these are the total quality management (TQM) and new public management (NPM) approaches (Mwita, 2000). These consumer-oriented models approach public service quality from the perspectives of the technical professional, the manager, and the client (Ovretveit, 1992; Curry & Herbert, 1998; Kadir, Abdullah, & Agus, 2000). Similarly, Joss & Kogan (1995) distinguish among technical, systemic, and generic (or interpersonal) aspects of quality, while Grönroos (1982) distinguishes technical from functional quality, the latter having to do with the way services are offered and received. Underlying these approaches is the idea that an essential part of public service quality is clients' evaluation of the level of service received, which is often founded on perceptions formed during service encounters (Parasuraman, Zeithaml, & Berry, 1988; Bitner, Booms, & Tetreault, 1990; Johnston, 1995). Recent Afrobarometer survey data from Ghana shows widespread public dissatisfaction with public services. The survey did not ask specifically about service quality, but analysis of the data points to the importance of service quality in citizens’ negative evaluations of government service delivery performance. This paper examines the hypothesis that the quality of public services is an intrinsic factor – and therefore an important indicator to monitor – in Ghanaians’ assessment of government service-delivery performance.
Topic:
Infrastructure, Governance, Leadership, Social Services, and Public Service
Political Geography:
Africa and Ghana

94. The Face of African Infrastructure: Service Availability and Citizens’ Demands

Author:
Benjamin Leo, Robert Morello, and Vijaya Ramachandran
Publication Date:
02-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Afrobarometer
Abstract:
The need for infrastructure improvements is a top-tier economic, political, and social issue in nearly every African country. Although the academic and policy literature is extensive in terms of estimating the impact of infrastructure deficits on economic and social indicators, very few studies have examined citizen demands for infrastructure. In this paper, we draw upon survey data to move beyond top-line estimates of national infrastructure access rates toward a more nuanced understanding of service availability and citizen demands at the regional, national, and sub-national levels. We find a predictable pattern of infrastructure services across income levels – lower-income countries have fewer services. The survey data also allows us to observe the sequencing of infrastructure services. On the demand side, survey respondents are most concerned with jobs and income-related issues, as well as with the availability of infrastructure, specifically transportation and sanitation. These priorities transcend demographic factors, including gender and location (urban/rural).
Topic:
Infrastructure, Social Services, Public Service, and Social Spending
Political Geography:
Africa

95. Ethiopia – an agrarian economy in transition

Author:
Yared Seid, Alemayehu Seyoum Taffesse, and Seid Nuru Ali
Publication Date:
12-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
United Nations University
Abstract:
Ethiopia has experienced rapid economic growth since 2005. Real gross domestic product (GDP) grew at an average rate of 10.5 per cent per annum for the period between 2004–05 and 2013–14. Public investment in key infrastructure and interventions in the agriculture sector have made important contributions to GDP growth. This growth has been accompanied by a process of capital deepening and signs of structural shift away from traditional and primary sectors towards secondary and tertiary sectors. Both processes of high growth and structural shift have important implications for poverty reduction and income distribution. One potential channel through which these influences work is the labour market. The indications of structural transformation that Ethiopia has shown in the last decade, including a continuous decline in the role of agriculture and rise in that of services, have led to reallocation of jobs and labour from low-productivity agriculture to more productive industrial—in particular the construction sub-sector—and service sectors. The rise in total factor productivity, overall increase in labour force participation rate, and fall in the labour share of the agriculture sector are indicative of the nature and extent of structural shift in the Ethiopian economy. A more durable shift of economic activities towards the manufacturing sector is expected to follow the rising trend in investment in the sector. This study explores the impact of the high economic growth and slow but unmistakable structural change on a number of economic outcomes working through the labour market. The growth opportunities and challenges of the Ethiopian economy are also discussed.
Topic:
Infrastructure, Economy, Economic Growth, Investment, and Labor Market
Political Geography:
Africa and Ethiopia

96. Making Every Kilometre Count: Prioritising Road Infrastructure Spending

Author:
Zambia Institute for Policy Analysis & Research (ZIPAR)
Publication Date:
01-2014
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Zambia Institute for Policy Analysis and Research (ZIPAR)
Abstract:
There so many factors that influence road projects prioritisation. Considering the highly restrictive public resources at disposal and the huge cost requirements of road projects, cautious programme optimisation is essential. Projects must thus be prioritised according to their costs and net the benefit they are expected to provide. Our report presents an assessment of the relative importance of some road projects, most of them from the Link Zambia 8000 programme and the major trunk roads from Lusaka to major international destinations. In this brief we provide an alternative viewpoint project prioritisation based on transportation efficiency, accessibility and socio-economic factors. The result is a coherent projects evaluation framework that suggests the most feasible projects to invest our limited resources and thus making every kilometre count towards national development.
Topic:
Development, Infrastructure, Governance, and Public Spending
Political Geography:
Africa and Zambia

97. Curbing Violence in Nigeria (II): The Boko Haram Insurgency

Publication Date:
04-2014
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
Boko Haram's four-year-old insurgency has pitted neighbour against neighbour, cost more than 4,000 lives, displaced close to half a million, destroyed hundreds of schools and government buildings and devastated an already ravaged economy in the North East, one of Nigeria's poorest regions. It overstretches federal security services, with no end in sight, spills over to other parts of the north and risks reaching Niger and Cameroon, weak countries poorly equipped to combat a radical Islamist armed group tapping into real governance, corruption, impunity and underdevelopment grievances shared by most people in the region. Boko Haram is both a serious challenge and manifestation of more profound threats to Nigeria's security. Unless the federal and state governments, and the region, develop and implement comprehensive plans to tackle not only insecurity but also the injustices that drive much of the troubles, Boko Haram, or groups like it, will continue to destabilise large parts of the country. Yet, the government's response is largely military, and political will to do more than that appears entirely lacking.
Topic:
Development, Economics, Islam, Armed Struggle, Insurgency, and Infrastructure
Political Geography:
Africa and Nigeria

98. Afrique centrale : les défis sécuritaires du pastoralisme

Publication Date:
04-2014
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
La pénétration du pastoralisme qui s'accentue depuis plusieurs années en Afrique centrale génère des conflits à la fois fréquents et ignorés dans un monde rural où l'empreinte de l'Etat est particulièrement faible. Ces conflits s'intensifient sous l'effet conjugué de plusieurs facteurs: l'insécurité croissante, le changement climatique qui pousse les pasteurs toujours plus au sud, l'éclatement des couloirs traditionnels de transhumance, notamment transfrontaliers, l'extension des cultures et l'augmentation des cheptels qui entrainent une compétition accrue sur les ressources naturelles. Même si les défis sécuritaires du pastoralisme ne sont pas de même intensité dans les trois pays étudiés dans ce rapport (Tchad, République centrafricaine et République démocratique du Congo), ils ont deux dénominateurs communs : l'impératif d'une prise en compte de ce problème par les pouvoirs publics et la nécessité d'une régulation de la transhumance qui inclue les différents acteurs concernés.
Topic:
Conflict Resolution, Security, Agriculture, Climate Change, Natural Resources, and Infrastructure
Political Geography:
Africa

99. The Impact of Trading with China on Botswana’s Economy

Author:
Kedibonye Sekakela
Publication Date:
09-2014
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Botswana Institute for Development Policy Analysis
Abstract:
The objective of this paper is to examine the impact of trading with China on Botswana’s domestic and third markets. The paper also assesses the structure and magnitude of Botswana-China bilateral trade. Botswana’s trade balance with China has been widening over the past decade, with Botswana mainly exporting primary products and importing intermediate and capital goods, which are mainly used as inputs in the development of infrastructure in the country. The increased import penetration from China is associated with Botswana’s reduced total manufacturing output. China’s Textile, Clothing and Footwear (TCF) exports gained market share from Botswana’s TCF exports in the third markets, that is South Africa. There is a need to consider ways of enhancing Botswana’s export competitiveness and there are also lessons to be learnt from China in relation to enhancing productivity in the TCF and other exporting industries.
Topic:
Development, Markets, Bilateral Relations, Infrastructure, and Exports
Political Geography:
Africa, China, Asia, and Botswana

100. Towards a Diversified Economy: A Preliminary Assessment of the Potential, Prospects and Challenges for Electricity Exports from Botswana

Author:
Margaret Sengwaketse
Publication Date:
07-2014
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Botswana Institute for Development Policy Analysis
Abstract:
The paper assesses the prospects and challenges of coal-fired power exports in Botswana. Specifically, the study analyses how supply factors, that is, resource availability; environmental concerns; infrastructure and technology as well as demand factors are likely to affect the development of thermal power exports in Botswana. The study concludes that coal resources are sufficient to support exports of thermal power and that technology on coal-fired power plants is available, reliable and mature. However, environmental concerns associated with coal-fired power generation; the high costs of construction and maintenance of power plants; regional demand factors, including the increasing competition from renewable sources of energy are major factors in the feasibility of the development of coal-fired electricity exports in Botswana.
Topic:
Development, Environment, Science and Technology, Infrastructure, Diversification, Exports, and Electricity
Political Geography:
Africa and Botswana