Political parties have been arguing that the city they govern is the best run in South Africa. A cold hard look at available data shows that there is not much difference between Johannesburg and Cape Town, who occupy the first or second spot in most indices. There is thus no definitive answer to the question, as to which metropolitan municipal government is the best, however voters should be circumspect in assessing the claims of political parties. The argument that Cape Town is exceptional however does not have a solid backing from the data reviewed.
Economic Transformation
Economic Transformation is a slogan of our time. The content in this section explores the shift from intentions to transform the economy, to the actions that are being undertaken.
Online retail study shows signs of growth in South Africa in 2010
Online retail study in South Africa shows strong growth between 2009 and 2010. This trend is reinforced when a longer perspective is taken.
Immigration policy in South Africa requires coalition building
South Africa must create a coalition between government, business and labour to address immigration policy.
Three things the National Planning Commission should be doing
Proposes a way to make the National Planning Commission work more open and transparent.
Employment in the South African Public Service
Presentation focussed on creating jobs and improving service delivery in the South African public service. Downloadable research report on which the presentation is based.
Safety for Women – The allocations are there, what about implementation?
In his Budget speech, Minister of Finance Pravin Gordhan made specific reference to creating safer communities. While we welcome the increases to the budget allocation, we await to see how the department of Police and Justice and Constitutional Development will spend it.
With the technological revolution, we are fast becoming “online communities” and we are also seeing more crimes perpetrated using advanced technology. As online spaces are also becoming unsafe (a reflection of what is happening in our society), especially for young girls and women, we need our police and justice system to respond to the challenges. Perpetrators of gender based violence are increasingly using technology to lure, track, monitor and stalk women and girls.
Don’t like the budget? Well there is nothing you can do about it
Improving the choices available to citizens through budget reform.
Enter the entrepreneur? Budget 2011 Proposals for Many Small Businesses not Just White Tigers
We like them. The small business that succeeds against the odds. Minister Gordhan even saluted a couple of success stories on the budget. In the build up to the budget, I choose to read The White Tiger by Indian author Aravind Adiga . The White Tiger provides a devastating description of the poverty traps, and that rare success stories translate to private gain without a wider social impact. The central premise of the book is that successful entrepreneurs are as rare as white tigers. In fact, in South Africa the data provided by the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor indicates that job creating, opportunity based businesses are a rarity in South Africa. The book though not set in South Africa provides a useful refrain from the rah-rah usually associated with entrepreneurship. What then does the budget propose for the small business entrepreneur?
Youth Subsidy and building consensus
Minister Pravin Gordhan reintroduction of the proposals around the youth subsidy is a brave political decision, given the overwhelming and justifiable criticism of the proposal. In tabling the new proposal Minister Gordhan has listened to the criticism and opted to tweak the proposal. The first proposal provided a wage subsidy or hiring voucher to lower cost of labour and compensate employers for the perceived risk of hiring inexperienced workers. In tweaking the proposal, government has shifted from this position, so that it is now to be administered as a tax credit. This is significant step as it potentially means that entry-level wages will remain the same.
Education gets a whopping R190 billion
An assessment of the education budget vote.