Author: Wim Naudé / Topic: Markets

Author:: Wim Naudé, Adam Szirmai, and Micheline Goedhuys
Publication Date:: 01-2011
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: United Nations University
Abstract:: Nobody can be left in any doubt as to the importance of innovation for prosperity upon reading that “people living in the first decade of the twentieth century did not know modern dental and medical equipment, penicillin, bypass operations, safe births, control of genetically transmitted diseases, personal computers, compact discs, television sets, automobiles, opportunities for fast and cheap worldwide travel, affordable universities, central heating, air conditioning . . . technological change has transformed the quality of our lives.”
Topic:: Development, Economics, Globalization, and Markets

Author:: Wim Naudé and Marianne Matthee
Publication Date:: 08-2007
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: United Nations University
Abstract:: The success of Africa's exports, as well as its spatial development, depends on lowering transport costs. In this Policy Brief, we address a number of pertinent questions on transport costs in Africa, such as 'what are transport costs?', 'do transport costs matter for trade?', 'how important are transport costs in practice?', and 'why are Africa's transport costs so high?' We present a case study of the firm location decisions of exporters in South Africa to illustrate the significance in particular of domestic transport costs for manufactured exports. The message from this Policy Brief is that Africa's international transport costs are significantly higher than that of other regions, and its domestic transport costs could be just as significant. Moreover we show how domestic transport costs influence the location, the quantity, and the diversity of manufactured exports. Various policy options to reduce transport costs in Africa are discussed.
Topic:: Economics, International Trade and Finance, and Markets
Political Geography:: Africa

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