The role of politics in the migration of Zimbabwean teachers to South Africa

This paper contributes to the debate on the role played by the political crisis in Zimbabwe in causing teacher migration to South Africa in the presence of other social and economic drivers. The paper uses data collected through a questionnaire self-administered by 100 Zimbabwean teachers in South Africa (migrants) and another 100 in Zimbabwe (non-migrants). In-depth interviews with a few migrant teachers were used to supplement these data. Although it was the second most mentioned reason for the teachers' migration to South Africa, the role played by political violence or repression in Zimbabwe in causing this migration should not be downplayed. Most migrant teachers came from Zimbabwean schools affected by political violence to a large extent before or after the 2008 presidential elections, especially rural areas. Teachers that held positions or distributed opposition party regalia were mostly displaced by violence. There is an urgent need for political transformation to more democratic rule in Zimbabwe.     

The personal and social benefits of urban agriculture experienced by cultivators on the Cape Flats

Urban agriculture is considered a grassroots solution to food security in Africa. Research consistently supports this belief, and in South Africa urban agriculture is promoted by national and local government. One city supporting urban agriculture is Cape Town, the only South African city with an urban agriculture policy. Although many questions remain regarding the sustainability of non-governmental organisation (NGO)-supported urban agriculture projects in Cape Town and their contribution to food security, this study argues that one must look beyond economics and the physical benefits of urban agriculture to the personal and social benefits. By capturing the lived experiences of cultivators on the Cape Flats in Cape Town, the study shows that urban agriculture not only contributes to food security but builds social capital, which improves livelihood strategies and interpersonal relations. This is especially the case where urban agriculture projects are facilitated by NGOs that fund, train and oversee cultivators in these impoverished communities.     

The Political Economy of Urban Food Security in Sub-Saharan Africa

Sub-Saharan African cities in the late 1990s face a daunting set of problems including rapid growth, increasing poverty, deteriorating infrastructure, and inadequate capacity for service provision. Even as a renewed debate is shaping up around issues of urban development, there is little attention given to the question of urban food security. Whereas in the 1970s and 1980s, urban food problems in Africa commanded political attention, the nature of urban food insecurity in the 1990s is such that it has tended to lose political importance. This is largely because in the 1970s, the problem was one of outright food shortages and rapid price changes that affected large portions of the urban population simultaneously. The impact of structural adjustment, continued rapid growth, and an increase in poverty make urban food insecurity in the 1990s primarily a problem of access by the urban poor. Under circumstances where the urban poor spend a very large portion of their total income on food, urban poverty rapidly translates into food insecurity. The lack of formal safety nets, and the shifting of responsibility for coping with food insecurity away from the state towards the individual and household level has tended to atomize and muffle any political response to this new urban food insecurity. This paper briefly reviews urban food insecurity and generates a set of empirical questions for an analysis of food and livelihood security in contemporary urban sub-Saharan Africa, and then examines historical and contemporary evidence from Kampala, Uganda, and Accra, Ghana, to suggest some tentative conclusions.     

Food poverty,hunger and household production in rural Eastern Cape households

More than two decades since the advent of democracy in South Africa, the place of small-scale agriculture in rural development, poverty alleviation and food security remains ambiguous and highly contested. However, there is now some new evidence that official income poverty estimates in South Africa may be underestimating the contribution of rural, land-based livelihoods when measuring household well-being. This paper aims to explore this possibility further by identifying how household production activities are associated with improved food security among rural Eastern Cape households in the former homelands. The analysis is based on data from Statistics South Africa’s 2008/9 Living Conditions Survey and its annual General Household Surveys. In adopting a food poverty lens, the findings suggest that hunger levels are lower among farming households in the Eastern Cape even though a higher percentage of these households (relative to non-farming households) live below the national food poverty line. The paper concludes by discussing some implications for policy.     

Unemployment and urban development in Gauteng

One aspect of the unemployment crisis which has not received much attention in South Africa is the spatial distribution of unemployment within cities. Concentrated unemployment within cities may be seen primarily as a product of market and non‐market housing allocation processes or of the spatial location of employment opportunities. This article examines the situation in Gauteng province using the 1991 population census and a 1995 survey of employers and using regression analysis to explain the unemployment rate in residential areas. It was found that there is no clear link between the location of employment opportunities and concentrated unemployment, suggesting that housing allocation factors play the decisive role. The findings raise some difficult questions about the appropriateness of urban development strategies which vigorously pursue the collocation of places of residence and work.     

Review of the South African Agricultural Legislative Framework: Food security implications

Although South Africa has reported national food security for decades, current production patterns, land uncertainty and consumer preferences put future national household food insecurity in question. Household food insecurity in South Africa is at unacceptable levels. This paper reviews the country's agricultural legislative framework in terms of food security and the right to food. The review found that South African agricultural policies do not actively promote food security and the lack of enforceable food security policy makes it difficult to coordinate existing policies. The lack of food security legislation means that the right to food has no enforceable framework. A comprehensive food security policy, legislative framework and implementation strategy are urgently needed to address hunger poverty to progressively achieve the targets set out for national growth and development and realise the right to food enshrined in the Constitution.     

Constraints facing tourism entrepreneurs in South Africa: a study in the Gauteng and Mpumalanga provinces,South Africa

The current study is an investigation into tourism entrepreneurship of small, medium and micro enterprises in Gauteng and Mpumalanga. Through Principal Factor Analysis, the paper identifies a three-factor instrument that could be used as a diagnostic tool to investigate how government policies and support, the tourism industry's products and services, and perceptions about South Africa could advance or constrain the development of small, medium and micro tourism in South Africa. Such a tool can be used to identify problematic areas in order to take remedial action to manage sustainable tourism in South Africa and prevent the leakage of profits.     

The challenges facing empirical estimation of household food (in)security in South Africa

This paper sets out to describe current principle theoretical positions in food security research, describe and compare empirical South African food security studies with key international methodologies and pose research challenges for food security research in the country. Scant available food security studies for South Africa seem to indicate that food insecurity and hunger exist and are likely to increase due to increasing food price trends, greater reliance on cash food purchases and spiralling vulnerability as a result of HIV/AIDS morbidity and mortality. Empirical research is urgently needed to determine the coping strategies of households under ‘normal’ conditions, identify vulnerable households, and monitor the impact of various shocks and stresses on household food security.     

Beyond GDP in assessing development in South Africa: The Gauteng City-Region Socio-Economic Barometer

Although consensus to move beyond gross domestic product (GDP) for measuring development in Africa exists, efforts to operationalise the idea have been frustrated by institutional barriers and lack of an integrated methodology. This article addresses the methodological problem by introducing an innovative graphic tool – The Gauteng City-Region Socio-Economic Barometer. The tool pulls together a set of 38 indicators across 10 sectors into a single analytical visual. Its efficacy rests in its ability to show each individual indicator, sector, and the overall socio-economy simultaneously. The Barometer not only acts as a tracking and diagnostic tool but as a benchmarking tool as well. Applied to Gauteng province of South Africa, the Barometer shows that high levels of GDP do not necessarily mean good quality of life. Assessment of welfare solely on the basis of GDP can therefore be misleading for government. The Barometer methodology is an invaluable tool for governments committed to evidence-based planning.     

High‐technology clusters and infrastructure development: international and South African experiences

The factors that have encouraged the emergence and clustering of high‐technology activities are investigated in the international and South African experience. This article focuses specifically on the significance of improved transport and telecommunication facilities for the development of high‐technology manufacturing. In line with international patterns, high‐technology manufacturing in South Africa is strongly agglomerated in the Pretoria‐Witwatersrand region. Central to the historical establishment of this cluster were the infrastructural advantages of Gauteng. Strengthening of the Gauteng cluster is linked to agglomeration economies deriving from the spatial concentration of both high‐technology production and non‐producer enterprises. Two distinct subclusters are identified: in Midrand and in the East Rand     

Food security and structural adjustment: Empirical evidence on the food price dilemma in Southern Africa

This article considers effects of price on food security and the food equation in the developing areas of South Africa. Firstly, the food (or hunger) equation is examined in more detail. Secondly, thefood price dilemma is analysed using empirical data obtained elsewhere in sub‐Saharan Africa. Thirdly, the situation in the developing areas of South Africa is examined. Empirical evidence in sub‐Saharan and Southern Africa accentuates the skewness and concentration in the market participation profile of rural households with respect to especially staples. Supply response to higher prices in these areas is also limited. These findings place the food price dilemma on centre stage in Southern Africa.     

Sustainable livelihood principles and urban greening in informal settlements in practice: A case of Zandspruit informal settlement,South Africa

This article looks to investigate the practice of using the ‘sustainable livelihood approach’ in a multifaceted urban greening project, Trees for Homes. The urban greening project was implemented to improve the quality of life and help marginalised citizens of an informal settlement in South Africa to adapt to climate variability through tree planting. We explored the actual execution of the independent techniques being utilised in the implementation of the Trees for Homes project and how it can promote sustainable livelihood objectives in the Zandspruit informal settlement in South Africa. Using a qualitative approach, the study was able to effectively apply sustainable livelihood principles. It was also found, however, that the multi-level principle was limited by the lack of political muscle which is endemic to many disempowered poor citizens of developing economies. Although the project was successful in many ways, political vulnerability within the development cycle threatens the longer term sustainability of the project outcomes.     

An empirical analysis on the effects of the inflation targeting framework on monetary policy in South Africa

This article examines the impact of the adoption of an Inflation Targeting (IT) framework in 2000 on the conduct of South Africa’s monetary policy. Taylor rule analysis is used to test empirically whether the implementation of IT in South Africa can be shown to have impacted on the conduct of monetary policy. In particular, the article analyses whether the implementation of the IT framework yields the expected changes when comparing the conduct of monetary policy pre and post the adoption of the IT framework. Thereafter, an analysis of term structure of interest rates, which serve as a proxy variable for market expectations, is used to test whether South Africa’s IT framework has resulted in more predictability and transparency in monetary policy conduct. Lastly, the article analyses the impact of the global financial crisis of 2008–2009, the so‐called Great Recession, on the predictability and transparency of monetary policy in South Africa.     

FOOD INFLATION IN SOUTH AFRICA: SOME IMPLICATIONS FOR ECONOMIC POLICY

This paper analyses the trends in food price movements in South Africa between 1980 and 2008. There are three main results emanating from the analysis in this paper. Firstly, food price movements have played a large role in generating inflationary episodes in South Africa. Secondly, while external influences do matter, South African food price movements are mainly due to domestic influences. This implies that national policy has an important role to play in taming domestic food price inflation. Thirdly, given the strong second round impacts, food price movements warrant special attention in monetary policymaking. Core measures of inflation that exclude food price movements may not accurately reflect the underlying inflationary pressures in the economy and could compromise the attainment of the goal of price stability.     

Evidence of short-term household change in South Africa from the National Income Dynamics Study

We use longitudinal data from the National Income Dynamics Study to document the extent of recent short-term residential and household compositional change in South Africa. We analyse the demographic correlates of these transitions, including population group, age, urban/rural status, and income. We examine educational and labour-market transitions among movers and the prevalence of the four major types of compositional change – births, addition of joiners, deaths, and loss of leavers. We find that short-term household change is prevalent in South Africa. During a two-year period from 2008 to 2010, 10.5% of South Africans moved residence and 61.3% experienced change in household composition. We find that moving is more common among blacks and whites, very young children, young adults, urban individuals, and those with higher incomes. Among non-movers, compositional change is more likely for blacks and coloureds, young adults and children, females, urban individuals, and individuals with lower incomes.     

Factors influencing adoption of genetically modified crops in Africa

The debate around genetically modified (GM) crops in Africa continues to grow especially among policy-makers, food manufacturers, farmer organisation and consumer advocacy groups and the general public. While other regions have taken a firm position on biotech crops, Africa remains largely ambivalent, with wide variation in GM policy across countries. The central objective of this paper is to analyse the factors that influence the adoption of GM crops in Africa. First we evaluate the current status of GM crop adoption in Africa. Second we identify the key enablers and hindrances to adoption of GM crops. The main factors include ministerial control of biosafety, peer country influence, stage of seed sector development, advocacy by key political figures, the media, activism, food security and technical capacity. We posit that, for most African countries, GM policy is guided by political rather than technological considerations with media and special interest groups playing a key role. Despite the numerous impediments, slow progress is being made in preparing the requisite enabling environment for biotechnology adoption in Africa.     

Urban agriculture in South Africa: Policy issues from the international experience

Recently, an increase has been observed in the practices of urban food gardening and the cultivation of vacant land on the peripheries of South Africa's metropolitan areas. In this paper it is argued that urban agriculture represents an issue of considerable importance for South African policy makers. A review is undertaken of research on informal agriculture in Asian and African cities. On the basis of this International review certain suggestions are offered for policy debates and research in South Africa.     

THE DEMAND FOR FOOD IN SOUTH AFRICA1

Food consumption is an important issue in South Africa, given its relation to poverty and deprivation. With the pressing need to increase food security, understanding the determinants of the demand for food and having some estimates of the likely impact of price and income changes has become a vital task. There is, however, surprisingly little economic research on this topic and almost none in recent times. This paper provides a comprehensive empirical analysis of the demand for food in South Africa for the years 1970‐2002. It moves beyond the usual static modelling approach in using a general dynamic log‐linear demand equation and a dynamic version of the almost ideal demand system, to provide estimates of the short‐ and long‐run price and expenditure demand elasticities.     

STOCHASTIC FRONTIER ANALYSIS OF SPECIALIST SURGEON CLINICS

Stochastic frontier analysis was used to estimate the technical efficiency of specialist surgeon practices based in Gauteng Province, South Africa. The analysis was conducted for both single and multiple output production functions, while efficiency was allowed to depend upon surgeon and practice characteristics. Multiple output models, due to an increase in the number of observations, can be more precisely estimated and, as there are multiple observations per surgeon, can be estimated with fixed effects. The results of the analyses suggest that efficiency averages around 50% for this sample and is convex in years of surgical experience. The benefit of multiple output analysis – improved precision – obtains, while surgeon‐level fixed effects alleviate some concerns related to unobserved heterogeneity.     

An investigation into food-away-from-home consumption in South Africa

Food policy that ignores food-away-from-home (FAFH) in a developing country like South Africa will be misleading given changes in demand for food over time. This study contributes to our understanding of the factors that influence the demand for FAFH in South Africa. Using panel data from the Income and Expenditure Survey, this study analyses the effects of income and socio-demographic variables on FAFH expenditure using a double-hurdle model. The results show that small-sized households headed by younger white females/males and living in an urban settlement are most likely to purchase FAFH while male-headed households spend more than female-headed households. Furthermore, income of the household head is an important determinant of household FAFH expenditures. The income elasticity of expenditure on FAFH is inelastic and a normal good. The small size of the participation elasticities means that growth in the FAFH sector will be driven by households with existing expenditure.