Development Southern Africa

A regulatory sandbox is an emerging approach used by financial sector regulators worldwide to respond to the rapid emergence of financial technologies (FinTech). In South Africa, the Intergovernmental FinTech Working Group launched its regulatory sandbox in 2020 and at the time of writing in 2021, seven firms had been permitted entry. While a regulatory sandbox may offer several promises, it may have adverse outcomes if the necessary conditions for successful implementation do not exist. Against this backdrop, this study seeks to determine if South Africa was ready to adopt a regulatory sandbox by exploring whether the necessary conditions for its implementation exist. The study triangulated results of interviews with individuals with secondary data to reach conclusions. The results show that a regulatory sandbox is an appropriate approach to FinTech regulation in South Africa, as most necessary conditions do exist. However, conditions that are not in place require remediation through appropriate interventions.

This study sharpens comparisons of gender differences in poverty in South Africa by distinguishing households according to the gender composition of resident adults rather than by household headship. The categories of female-dominated and male-dominated households (where all adults are either women or men respectively) are subsets of female- and male-headed households but their classification avoids many of the problems associated with the concept of household headship. Using nationally representative micro-data, we show that both female-dominated and male-dominated households have become more prevalent over time. Comparing these household types reveals that when men live without women, they mostly live alone; while women who live without men are far more likely to live with children. These differences in household composition help to explain why the gender poverty differential is more marked when comparing female- and male-dominated households as opposed to the broader and more heterogeneous categories of female- and male-headed households.

Mauritius is a highly vulnerable country with respect to the negative impact of climate change. In this respect, it is imperative to address environmental issues through various instruments and one particular tool chosen for this purpose is fiscal measures in the form of environmental taxes. Consequently, the objectives of this research are to critically assess the various types of environmental taxes in Mauritius and to provide recommendations to enhance the existing framework on environmental taxation as a policy instrument to alleviate pollution and environment degradation in Mauritius. In particular, the carbon taxation, motor fuel taxes, vehicle ownership taxes, Maurice Ile Durable (MID) levy plastic containers levy and environment protection fee among others will be analysed. The methodology applied in this research is a legal analysis of rules pertaining to environmental taxation in Mauritius. A comparative analysis will also be performed to find out the corresponding legal provisions on environmental taxes in South Africa. Since Mauritius is part of Africa, it becomes relevant to compare how one among the African continent’s most powerful economic powerhouses being South Africa, is dealing with environmental degradation and whether Mauritius may implement some of them.

Whereas urban agriculture is a potential tool for urban local economic development (LED), there appears to be little empirical evidence that has examined how urban agriculture affects the urban local economy from a LED perspective. This research aims to examine the role of urban agriculture in the urban local economy in a developing country, Ghana. Data for the research was obtained through focus group discussions and key informant interviews with urban agriculturalists and urban local authorities in two assemblies respectively in the Greater Accra region of Ghana. The findings showed that if properly supported, urban agriculture can improve the local economy because of its multiple benefits of employment, income, and improved livelihood and food security. This study contributed to expanding the international scholarship on LED from the perspective of using urban agriculture as an LED strategy by examining the case in Ghana.

Climate change continues to exacerbate social and economic development challenges in local communities the world over. This paper advances a human development approach to climate resilience innovations, showing how local innovation initiatives can be conduits for increased equity, agency, efficiency and sustainability vis-à-vis effective responses to climate impacts. Based on a scoping review of literature (journal articles, books, theses, occasional papers etc.), and through a discussion of four case studies focused on technological and institutional innovations in selected rural South African communities, a major finding is that local innovation initiatives vis-à-vis livelihoods are laden with opportunities for improved social, economic and ecological well-being. Appreciating and supporting these local innovations will open up viable and transformative pathways towards effectively responding to the impacts of climate change and variability. The paper contributes to an interdisciplinary integration of innovation and climate change research by exploring climate resilience through a transformative human development lens.

The impact of large-scale mining in sub-Saharan Africa on local livelihoods is controversial. Little consensus exists about whether mining is a ‘blessing’ or a ‘curse’ for affected communities. This article estimates the impact of mine proximity on local socioeconomic outcomes. It does so by linking georeferenced survey data to mine locations, to determine whether living near a mine results in systematically better or worse scores on measures of lived poverty, development infrastructure and access to basic household services. The data (from Afrobarometer Round 6) spans 19 countries, 148 large-scale mines, and 4,796 households. The analysis shows that the average effects of proximity to a mine are modest compared with cross-national and urban-rural differences in living conditions. Mining is not consistently a ‘blessing’ or a ‘curse’ for affected local communities in sub-Saharan Africa.

This article analyses the strategies Zimbabwean women use to help them manage their small-scale businesses in Harare. Based on three focus groups as well as semi-structured interviews with the same respondents (n = 21), we consider the advantages and disadvantages conferred on the women by their social capital. The women networked to create rotating credit associations (ROSCAs) to generate working capital. They devised several ingenious mechanisms to reduce the risks involved in contributing money to a common fund. They tried to overcome collective action problems by maximising both confidence and trust. Social capital facilitated their agency in a disempowering context while at the same time exposing them to the free riding behaviour of in-laws. Finally, the social networks of these women are not independent of the social networks of other, better-connected women with whom they are in competition, which points to a weakness of social capital and neo-institutionalist perspectives.

Governments in Sub-Saharan Africa introduced population movement restrictions as a measure to contain the COVID-19 spread. Their evaluation is paramount to help policymakers take evidence-based policy decisions. Rigorous econometric studies in the region are sparse. Our study contributes to covering this gap. Using a Panel Poisson fixed-effects model, we detect the association between the COVID-19 new cases per population and restriction movement policies across 23 Sub-Saharan African countries from February 28, 2020 to August 16, 2020. We control for the interaction of the policies with the spread of the infection, time-variant country-specific characteristics, and the countries’ preparedness level to respond to the pandemic. Our study shows that restrictive and lockdown measures contribute to the dilution of COVID-19 infections compared to a situation of no policies. Such effectiveness would be more substantial if countries intensify movement restrictions at the increasing levels of virus transmission, highlighting the importance of timely testing.

This study examined the influence of COVID-19-induced challenges on pregnancy desire among married/in-union women of reproductive age in Lagos and Kano states, Nigeria. The performance monitoring for action (PMA) data were analysed using descriptive statistics and multilevel regression. About 12% of women desired no pregnancy; 43% would feel happy and unhappy respectively, if pregnancy occurred during the pandemic, while 13.9% would have mixed feelings. COVID-19 concern was associated with no pregnancy desire (OR = 1.14; CI = 1.05–1.24) but negatively associated with feeling happy (RRR: 0.83; CI: 0.71–0.98). Experience of partial household income loss was negatively associated with having mixed feelings (RRR = 0.30; CI = 0.13–0.69). Experience of complete income loss was negatively associated with feeling happy and mixed feelings respectively. In each state, women with COVID-19 concerns and household income loss should be empowered to prevent unwanted pregnancies and their attendant negative reproductive and mental health consequences.

The concept of circular economy includes three aspects from a human perspective, namely Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. Studying human behaviour is important in understanding and evaluating the possible success of any of the three elements. We explored the link between household waste practices and local governments’ ability to provide proper waste management, as stipulated in the South African Constitution, as well as the factors linked to different waste management practices through a cross-case analysis using a mixed-method research design. Households in Calvinia, Philippolis and Polokwane handle waste differently due to different levels of municipal waste services rendered and the availability of local recycling options. Most households in all three towns indicated their willingness to take part in recycling. Surprisingly, the level of household income has no statistically significant impact on waste behaviour. On the other hand, the one factor that does impact on waste behaviour is the inclusion of recycling projects in school curricula.

Human capital (HC) has increasingly been identified as a driver of economic development, with the potential to reduce income inequality, which, in South Africa, originates in the labour market. HC is, however, a complex concept to measure. This study uses Fields’ regression-based decomposition method to analyse the relationships between income inequality and HC in South Africa. The Fields method allows for the analysis of the impact of several factors contributing to HC on the distribution of a measure of income. Data from the National Income Dynamics Study (NIDS) wave 1 (2008) and 5 (2017) are used. The findings suggest that increasing educational attainment, through improved school quality for all, would likely play a key role in reducing income inequality in South Africa. Furthermore, the large role of education attainment in explaining household income inequality supports the use of education attainment as a proxy for HC in South Africa.

Understanding the causal influence of financial anxiety on future work commitment with social support and socio-psychological wellbeing as mediators amongst crisis-induced redundant tourism employees remains limited. Using data collected from 547 COVID-19-induced redundant tourism employees, this paper examines the influence of financial anxiety on future work commitment with social support and socio-psychological wellbeing as mediators. The findings reveal that financial anxiety has a negative influence on social support and social and psychological wellbeing. Social support has a negative influence on social wellbeing, while social support has a positive influence on future work commitment. Both social and psychological wellbeing has a negative influence on future work commitment. Meanwhile, the influence of financial anxiety on future work is fully mediated by social support and socio-psychological wellbeing. Insurance uptake and establishment of welfare funds amongst tourism employees can be used to buffer the effects of financial anxiety on future work commitment.

This study examines differences in depressive symptoms between informal and formal workers in South Africa during the COVID-19 lockdown period. The analysis focuses on the June to October 2020 period, which was characterised by the easing of lockdown regulations from level 3 to level 1. Using the NIDS-CRAM wave 2 and 3 survey data, the study estimates a standard logit and a fixed effects logit model to account for worker’s unobserved heterogeneity. Results show that the likelihood of experiencing depressive symptoms increased across all workers between June and October. However, there were no statistically significant differences between informal and formal workers’ mental health over this period. Additional results show that workers living in urban areas and households suffering from hunger had a higher risk of experiencing depressive symptoms. Based on these results, the study recommends for government strategies that curb the rise in depressive symptoms among all workers.

When disasters happen in the world, government departments and NGOs collaborate to support survivors through various interventions. Whether these interventions respond to the gendered impacts of these disasters is an area that has not been given adequate research attention. This paper provides a gendered analysis of the interventions targeted at Cyclone Idai survivors in Zimbabwe’s Chimanimani District. It draws from data generated through focus group discussions, in-depth interviews, and key-informant interviews with cyclone survivors and representatives from government agencies and NGOs that provided humanitarian assistance in Chimanimani District. The study revealed that the interventions were implemented without comprehensively integrating gendered issues due to the absence of a clear gender responsive national policy framework for disaster management in Zimbabwe. The study recommends gender sensitive training to those who assist in distributing humanitarian assistance and the need to address gender-skewed responses caused by treating gender as synonymous with women.

The aim of this study is to examine the financial development-inequality nexus in South Africa from 1980 to 2017, specifically if financial deepening reduces income inequality. The initial results indicate a positive association between financial deepening and income inequality. On further exploration, we find evidence that the Greenwood and Jovanovich hypothesis holds for South Africa. We observe an inverted non-linear relationship between financial deepening and income inequality in the long-run. The results suggest that at early stages of financial development, income inequality increases, but gradually starts to decrease as the financial sector becomes more established in the long-run. The findings highlight the need for policymakers to focus on inclusive financial sector reforms in the early stages of financial development.

This is the first South African study that analysed all three available waves of Statistics South Africa’s Volunteer Activities Survey data, which was linked to the Quarterly Labour Force Survey in the third quarter of the same year (2010, 2014 and 2018). The empirical findings showed that volunteers were predominantly female Africans without Matric, aged 25–34 years and resided in the urban areas of KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng and Limpopo. In 2018 the labour force participation rate and unemployment rate of the volunteers were 62% and 34% respectively. These rates were both a bit higher than the corresponding rates of people who did not volunteer. The volunteers spent 20 h in the past four weeks on volunteering activities relating to service work and elementary occupations. More than 85% of volunteers did not expect to receive anything back. For those who indicated otherwise, they most likely expected to receive out-of-pocket expenses and food.

The aim of the study was to identify types of small-scale businesses used by households for self-employment, the challenges they face, and the type of support received from government and non-governmental organisations. Two independent studies were conducted: a mixed-method approach was applied to obtain information from 200 respondents in two rural districts of Limpopo province of South Africa. A qualitative case study was also conducted in an urban setting in the Gauteng province of South Africa to explore the business operations of 13 small-scale clothing manufacturers. Businesses were related to agriculture, various artisan and consumer-related fields. Problems experienced included limited production/financial business resources and management skills. Incubation hub entrepreneurs were resourceful and used creativity for business survival. The findings underscore the need for skills training and support for small-scale clothing manufacturing business owners.

In Namibia, the commercialisation of non-timber forest products (NTFPs) is often promoted as a means to improve rural livelihoods, especially for vulnerable communities. This paper analysed how NTFP value chains are integrated into and contribute to the livelihoods of Khwe and !Xun San harvesters. Accordingly, the working conditions, employment and upgrading opportunities of the globally traded Devil's Claw were compared to those of regionally traded products, including Natal Oranges. A mixed-method approach was applied to collect data in Okongo Constituency and Bwabwata National Park. Findings revealed that while NTFPs contribute to the harvesters’ income generation, the income is insufficient to sustain their livelihoods. Interestingly, the results of both regional and global value chain integration do not lead to improved livelihoods. Further research is needed to analyse the synergies between the government, traditional and local authorities, NGOs, and other institutions in implementing laws that promote equitable sharing of benefits from NTFPs.

The link between finance and growth is a well-researched area, yet this relationship at local level has received little empirical scrutiny. We trace the operations of Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) in Africa. We examine the role played by MFIs on local economic development using a model capturing both local geography and MFIs dynamics in Africa for the periods 1992-2015. Our sample is representative of 2,170 MFIs operating in 144 cities, 154 towns and 14 villages in Africa. Using night-time data to capture economic growth, our key hypothesis is that MFIs drive local economic progress. Conditioning on the geographical location of MFIs, we find that the presence and density of MFIs increase as the growth in light density and the estimate retains its statistical significance. The results suggest that MFIs operations may foster local economic activity.

Despite the increase in tourism, the contribution of tourism to poverty reduction is questionable. Using secondary data with poverty index as a dependent variable, the effects of tourism value, total trade value, foreign direct investment, gross domestic product, and exchange rates were tested using econometric time series analysis for Tanzania from 1987 to 2020. The results for the long-run effects indicate all five variables significantly influence on human development as a proxy for poverty. Foreign direct investment has a negative effect, unlike the other variables. These results offer support to the Tourism Led Growth Hypothesis for a developing country like Tanzania in sub-Saharan Africa. Thus it is logical to continue promoting tourism in conjunction with the facilitation of export trade as a means of poverty reduction. Attracting foreign direct investments should continue but put into consideration policies, regulations, and the business environment that facilitate local business linkages with tourism which will reduce profit leakages.

The known and expected consequences of climate change are dire and will hamper social and development. However, competing priorities, such as poverty, HIV and violence tend to be more visible on government agendas. In South Africa, growing inequalities result in the population being more concerned with socioeconomic problems. However, issues of poverty and unemployment, among others, are also the result of environmental degradation. This study examines the attitudes of South Africans toward environmental issues in relation to competing challenges. This cross-sectional study uses the nationally representative 2017 South African Social Attitudes Survey (SASAS) of approximately 3 173 (n) adults. Results show that environmental issues rank 17th among the most important challenges. Further, 20.08% of the population who cite economic, 28.66% with social and 15.96% who report health competing interests also cite environmental concerns. Those who cited social competing interests were also more likely to report environmental concerns (OR = 1.56; CI: 1.55152–1.55866). In conclusion, environmental issues are not highly ranked among the priorities of the population. However, commonalities between climate and economic, social and health challenges is an ideal place to start with information dissemination.

Cooking, an important household activity is often done using heavy polluting fuels by a majority of households in sub-Sahara Africa (SSA). In this study, we examine how the choice of cooking fuel affects women empowerment using nationwide household level data from Ghana. We examine whether fuel choices could lead to women’s social and economic empowerment. By employing the Survey-based Women Empowerment Index (SWPER) and Principal Component Analysis to construct comprehensive indices of women empowerment, we find that using clean cooking fuel has significant positive associations with women empowerment across all domains and could consequently help reduce inequality to the advantage of women. Other socioeconomic factors such as household size and wealth were found to significantly determine women empowerment status. Both clean cooking fuel use and the reduction of social and economic inequalities are important targets to be met under the Sustainable Development Goals.

The safety of neighbourhoods remains challenging in developing countries due to several dynamics. This article explores the role of urban planning for safer neighbourhoods in two low-income neighbourhoods in the city of Windhoek. The study focuses on several crime attractors and generators influencing housebreaking incidents in two neighbourhoods. Various physical characteristics influence opportunities for crime in Katutura and Otjomuise, such as the location of alcohol outlets within the residential areas and large and unmaintained public open spaces. A lack of development in Otjomuise also influenced incidents of crime. However, severe socio-economic conditions and social factors also contributed to opportunities for crime. The findings have implications on planning and development in Namibia in terms of policy development and planning guidelines and assessments.

Previous studies have established the importance of social networks in determining youth employment outcomes. The quality and quantity of social entities in social networks and effectively using them, have a positive influence on employment outcomes. However, limited evidence exists on the composition and role of social networks on youth employment in resource-limited countries. Our study addresses current evidence gaps by investigating the association of social networks and job search behaviours in a sample of South African youth who are neither in employment, education, or training (NEET). Our results indicate that the association of social networks with job search behaviours depends on the type of social network and job search behaviours. Having more people in youth’s social network was associated with a higher likelihood of attending a job interview but no association with job applications’ submission. Additional family members were positively associated with job interviews, as well. Age, gender, relationship status, geographic residence, formal postsecondary education, training experience, caregiver status, and mobile phone ownership were also associated with job search behaviours. Overall, our findings indicate that social networks, particularly family members, are more predictive of job interviews than job applications.

This study analyses the main determinants of migration in order to guide future policy interventions in Ethiopia. We use a double-hurdle model for observing a sample of 4,946 households by a representative survey data. The findings show that the likelihood of migration mainly depends on socio-economic factors while not affected by regional origin. The determinants related to household heads and members have strong impacts, thus confirming that the decision is driven by these actors instead of being a purely individual choice. In addition, the findings confirm that migration is mainly linked to rural areas. Educational policies have a decisive impact on the household choice to let someone migrate. Literacy is the strongest determinant of migration choice, with the highest impact; agricultural policies have a smaller impact on the decision to migrate rather than other policies have.

This paper provides an introduction to this Special Issue of Development Southern Africa that evaluates the impact of COVID-19 in South Africa, one year into the pandemic. All of the papers use evidence from the National Income Dynamics Study – Coronavirus Rapid Mobile Survey (NIDS-CRAM), a five-wave longitudinal survey conducted from April 2020 to July 2021. As we write this article in June 2022, South Africa has just returned to the same level of GDP that it had at the end of 2019. This two-year period marks one of the most tumultuous in the country’s economic history. We showcase results pertaining to employment, income support, hunger, schooling, early childhood development, mental health, and vaccine hesitancy. We also reflect on the policy learnings that can be gleaned in each of these domains and draw on some of the international lessons learnt to point to the way forward.

This article examines the conceptualisation of gender mainstreaming by the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and its member state Botswana, and the SADC Gender Protocol Alliance. Critical discourse analysis based on Norman Fairclough's work is used to find out how gender mainstreaming has been conceptualised to take into account the informal sector of Botswana. The findings of the study show that gender mainstreaming is limited by structural barriers of transforming unequal gender relations, and limited coordination between government institutions, the Botswana Informal Sector Association and the SADC Gender Protocol Alliance. The paper suggests that for gender mainstreaming to be effective, it requires a clear understanding on how various policies define gender problems and shape gender relations.

This paper articulates state response to homelessness through multi-agency intervention in South Africa. While it argues strongly on relativity of homelessness, it however agrees with previous authors on common constituents of the concept. Based on secondary sources this paper delves into what constitutes homelessness and why there has been homelessness in the country, due to one or a combination of structural and individual related drivers. It further explores the state’s use of a multi-agency housing focused approach that integrates appropriate legislations, social services interventions and public works, where over 3.3 million houses have been delivered in the country. While in-depth review of available data indicated significant increase in housing provision, the strategy is confronted with human, material, and rising need concerns. Importantly, there is no certainty yet on the extent to which the ‘street homeless’ and marginalised groups of the poor are served equally to other categories of the homeless.

In both developed and developing countries, the fourth industrial revolution has brought serious concerns about human development. Although the fourth industrial revolution has the propensity to enhance human well-being in sustainable and innovative ways, nearly half of Africa's work is vulnerable to innovations of the digital wave. The study examined the impact of human development on fourth industrial revolution in sub-Saharan African countries, using time series data spanning from 2003 to 2019. Data was analysed using fully modified ordinary least (FMOLS) technique. The findings of the study revealed that human development has a positive but insignificant influence on the fourth industrial revolution. The article promotes awareness of the steps necessary to speed up the development of a relevant, requisite and competitive workforce for industry 4.0.

The coronavirus pandemic has had devastating effects on urban lives and livelihoods throughout the world. A major concern in the global North has been the hollowing out of central cities caused by remote working. The consequences for cities in the global South extend further and deeper because their economies are weaker, social and spatial inequalities larger, and healthcare systems more fragile. The paper explores the uneven trajectory of COVID-19 for people and places in South African cities, drawing on unique individual panel data. It shows how communities that were already the most vulnerable have been hit hardest by the pandemic, triggering hardship, hunger and social unrest. Local institutions will have to play a stronger role if society is to manage pandemics better in the future.

This paper uses a participatory approach to assess the level of understanding of the Water-Energy-Climate Change (WECC) nexus in South Africa. The aim is to initiate the development of well-coordinated, systematic, and holistic strategies to promote efficient management of the WECC and its implications in the country. The assessment follows the learnings from the Integrated Water Resource Management framework, which promotes a participatory approach in the administration of water resources. The paper reveals that, despite the reasonable level of understanding of WECC, it is still insufficient to promote an integrated approach mainly in policy development and planning for water and energy resources while averting climate impacts. This is exacerbated by limited coordination and consultation among various stakeholders. However, minimal efforts to promote an integrated approach in the management of the WECC sectors is observed. Despite these developments, the paper proposes that the participatory approach is feasible to promote holistic strategies and collaboration among stakeholders mandated to manage WECC sectors. Until approaches such as this are adopted within the institutional framework, this nexus will continue to impede the country's sustainable development endeavours.

The ‘social franchising’ model for the operation and maintenance of selected water and sanitation infrastructure, the conceptual origins of the model, its subsequent development by desktop research methods, and its piloting in the field, are described. Piloted in South Africa by a team with extensive experience of water and sanitation infrastructure and business development, the model has since been rolled out to scale, simultaneously bringing about (i) the servicing of selected infrastructure, returning it to full use, and (ii) micro-business development and nurturing, job creation, and skills development. Development and implementation of the model over two decades have demonstrated its robust nature compared to equivalent stand-alone micro-businesses, how it can partner in schools to improve health and hygiene education, and the effectiveness of the work it has done on infrastructure servicing and to accomplish tasks other than basic maintenance.

This paper conducts an analysis of employment uncertainty in South Africa during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, using NIDS-CRAM and five waves of Statistics SA's Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS: 2020-Q1 to 2021-Q1). We find that much of the differences in estimates of labour force states including employment, unemployment and not economically active, are due to different initial conditions and different reference periods between the two surveys, as well as the way that uncertain job attachment is measured in the questionnaires. This leads to higher estimates of employment in NIDS-CRAM compared to the QLFS for both a pre-pandemic baseline and over the entire period investigated (February 2020 to March 2021). This implies the two data sources are not strictly comparable, but rather complementary when analysing different aspects of the labour force. We discuss the implications for labour market research based on these data sources.

This study measures the vulnerability of households to food insecurity by measuring the risk or threat posed by climate change. This is conducted using multilevel or hierarchal regression, an extension of the “Three Stage Least Squares” model. Unlike the standard ordinary least squares regression model, this model can produce estimates of different hierarchal levels and produce unbiased reliable standard errors. With a sample size of 18,444 households nested within nine provinces, the findings show that climate change is a reality in South Africa, and it poses serious threats that expose households to future food consumption inadequacies. This study also offers a deeper understanding of the different sources of vulnerability among these households. Poverty or structural-induced vulnerability emerged as the main source of vulnerability for South African households. Climate change-induced vulnerabilities were also found to be prevalent and detrimental in rural areas with Limpopo and Eastern Cape being the most vulnerable provinces.

Tourism is a great economic enabler and driver for development. Despite taking a recent knock due to the global pandemic, the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), tourism is fragile as a sector that is based on perception. Hence, it is a sector that is fraught with its own risks that need careful management at various levels of governance. Some of these risks are associated with the urban transition where urbanisation in sub-Saharan Africa is projected to increase rapidly and contribute a significant share to the global urban population. Unfortunately, more than half of that urban population in sub-Saharan Africa is going to be in informal settlements. With this state of an urban transition, poor people are moving into spaces where the socio-economic conditions are not conducive for a decent life. Disparities in the urban areas and the impact of tourism in entrenching inequality and exclusion under a neoliberal framework cannot be underestimated. Rising levels of marginality within the urban landscape and their inherent urban risks and environmental injustices, for example in post-apartheid South Africa, are attributed to a country’s capitalist political economy. The positive spin from urban tourism can also not be ignored, so this book looks at the modalities through which the potential for tourism can be tapped but in an inclusive and progressive way for the city residents and the greater economy alike.

The risks posed by climate change have become increasingly apparent. In response, the South African government has introduced various policy measures, reflecting a commitment to transitioning to a low-carbon economy. Successfully navigating this transition requires policy processes to take account of individual preferences, concerns, and lived realities. Yet a significant knowledge gap remains. Data from the South African Social Attitudes Survey (SASAS, 2017) are used to test aspects of the Stern’s value-belief-norm model. Climate beliefs, climate concern and personal responsibility are profiled. The strongest predictors of climate concern are a belief in the reality of climate change, expectations of negative impacts, and the salience afforded to climate change. In turn, climate concern, attribution scepticism, and impact scepticism are most likely to determine feelings of personal responsibility to reduce climate change. These findings have implications for climate change communication and interventions to minimise the human development consequences of climate change.

In South Africa, the consumption of coal for electricity is at the top of the charts for coal consumption in Africa. The continued usage of non-renewable energy sources accounts for ∼50% of the total greenhouse gas accumulation in the atmosphere globally. This study, therefore, aims to identify suitable sites for wind farms within the Maluti-A-Phofung municipality. Data for this study was sourced from climate stations within the MAP and the extant literature for standards and regulations. The Weibull function and ArcGIS 10.6 were used to establish a suitable site for wind farms within the MAP. The results from the study suggested that wind speed and direction in MAP municipality experienced variations but with a steady-state over time. However, based on criteria from other factors the MAP municipality should opt for micro-generators, that is, individual wind turbines per household for clean energy supply.

This article presents the results of the five waves of the National Income Dynamics Study – Coronavirus Rapid Mobile Survey (NIDS-CRAM) on food security between May 2020 and May 2021. Despite significant investments in social protection, food insecurity and household and child hunger remained stubbornly high. We conclude that given the protracted nature of the pandemic, slow economic recovery, household and child hunger have stabilised at higher levels than before the pandemic. The phasing out of emergency relief coupled with the constrained economic situation, are some of the reasons why levels of food insecurity and hunger are likely to remain high in the near future. Strict lockdown regulations also reduced employment and income from informal economic activities. Social support for vulnerable individuals and households remain an urgent priority. Continuing support targeted at households with children is particularly important given the dire consequences of enduring hunger for stunting, and on children’s long-term development.

Wage subsidy-based job retention policy has served as a dominant tool used to mitigate job losses in the context of COVID-19. In South Africa, such a policy served as a core component of the government’s policy response: the Temporary Employer-Employee Relief Scheme (TERS). We make use of longitudinal survey data to analyse aggregate and between-group TERS receipt during the pandemic as well as the relationship between receipt and job retention. We find that the policy reached millions of workers but coverage was highest during the beginning of the pandemic. Although several groups disproportionately benefited, vulnerable groups were over-represented amongst recipients over time. Benefits were higher in relative terms for lower-wage workers. Although not causally identified, we find evidence of a significant, positive relationship between TERS receipt and job retention, consistent with the policy being successful in its aim of minimising job losses, however only during the most stringent lockdown period.

Participatory Learning Approaches (PLAs) were used in identifying community expectations and needs for the introduction of the RoadMApp mHealth software (a geographically enabled mHealth technology which would link pregnant women to transportation to health facilities) in Kwekwe District, Zimbabwe. The sampling frame included different demographic groups which voluntarily took part in the study. 84 participants took part in the study. Chapati visual methods were conducted on Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) at 3 Rural Health Centres, whilst in-depth informant interviews (IDIs) and problem tree analysis were conducted at 10 clinics in urban, peri-urban, and rural areas. Thematic analysis and root-cause-analysis were used to interpret the data. Major themes identified were (a.) unavailability of savings for institutional childbirth, (b.) transport problems, and (c.) donor dependency. We recommend RoadMApp mHealth software to look beyond catering for transportation and savings for pregnancy related conditions, but inclusion of other health conditions.

The success of any government’s efforts to sustainably reduce the risk of and/or manage disasters depends to a large extent on the people’s knowledge, beliefs, attitudes and perceptions of the risk posed by the disaster. This study assessed the government and communities of Botswana’s response to the outbreak of coronavirus (COVID-19). The survey utilised a stratified three-stage probability sampling design to select respondents according to strata constituting primary sampling units (PSUs). Kruskal–Wallis tests were used to evaluate differences between respondents’ knowledge, beliefs, attitudes and perceptions of COVID-19 according to their localities (urban, villages and rural areas). Results show that even though Botswana was not prepared for a national public health disaster of the magnitude of COVID-19, its timely adoption of the disease preventive strategy seems to have weathered the storm for some time (66% urban, 64.9% villages, 37.1% remote areas; p < 0.003).

The Impact Investing market which seeks to create intentional social impact, requires effective impact measurement. This research used exploratory methods to examine the Impact Investing market in South Africa. In total, 12 professionals in South Africa were interviewed using semi-structured interviews. The interview pool included evaluation experts, managers and directors within intermediary businesses and owners of businesses who receive impact investment funds. While existing literature indicates three stakeholder groups, our study identified four groups and highlighted the lack of attention to beneficiaries as a stakeholder group. Our study found that stakeholder engagement should be a continuous process. We identified three key phases within an investment cycle and aligned important impact measurement and stakeholder engagement processes within each of the phases. Noting the different needs of intermediaries and investees, the key phases and corresponding processes are mapped in a Stakeholder Integrated Impact Measurement Conceptual Framework.

The effect of technological innovation on economic growth has received significant attention in the developed world over the last decades due to its speedy development and potential impacts. However, little is known in the context of developing countries, arguably due to data challenges. This paper uses panel dynamic Ordinary Least Square regression with annual data from the World Bank and global economy (2004–17) to examine the empirical link between technological innovation and economic growth in Southern Africa. The study finds that technological innovation indicators such as researchers in research and development, graduates from information and communication technology, patents-nonresidents, graduates from science, technology, engineering and mathematics and scientific and technical outputs have significant positive relationship with per capita economic growth in the long run, but no relationship exists for patents-residents and government expenditure with per capita economic growth. Based on the findings, policy intervention and strategies that promote these indicators are recommended.

In this paper we use data from waves 1–5 of NIDS-CRAM to investigate labour market outcomes in 2020/1 for four age groups: youth (aged 18–24), prime-age adults (aged 25–39), middle-age adults (aged 40–54) and older adults (aged 55–64). We contrast outcomes just before and just after the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown (February and April 2020) with outcomes one year later (March 2021), and study transitions between the periods. We find that although the NIDS-CRAM employment-to-population ratio was near identical in February 2020 and March 2021 (56.4% versus 56.6%), there had been extensive churning between the two periods. By March 2021, 23% of the February 2020 employed had lost work and 30% of the non-employed had found work. Amidst these changes, youth experienced the largest employment-to-population ratio increase, while older adults suffered the largest decrease in employment and a decline in participation rates (changes not statistically significant).

Non-payment for services continues to challenge sustainability in municipal service delivery across South Africa. Literature provides that the culture of non-payment stems from the apartheid era where mass civil disobedience manifested through boycotting the payment of rates. This study examines the impact of the non-payment culture on municipal financial performance in South Africa. Panel data for 28 municipalities for the years 2005–19 is used, and the random-effects model is employed to estimate the relationship between municipal financial performance and non-payment. Results confirm that non-payment has a negative impact on financial performance. For every R1000 increase in bad debts written off, financial performance is reduced by R291. Further, grants from the national government, the number of consumers, and the number of household units receiving free basic electricity positively affect financial performance. These revelations warrant the need for more innovative approaches that transform non-payment into a culture of payment.

The paper describes sources of resilience in Zimbabwe’s supermarket value chains and the strategies for building resilience. Although Zimbabwe has witnessed a steady growth in the number of supermarkets, that growth has been disrupted by the volatile operating environment. Data was collected from an online survey of supermarket managers, websites and secondary sources. The study found that franchising, extensive branch networks, mergers and acquisitions and multiple store formats have provided major supermarkets such as OK, TM/Pick n Pay and Spar with an adaptive capacity that has enabled them to operate for several decades in Zimbabwe’s volatile food retail sector. These findings have implications for improving government policy making and supermarket managers’ knowledge on developing resilient food systems under a turbulent macroeconomic environment. Further, the study provides key insights on strategies that are indispensable for building the necessary resilience ingredients required by supermarkets to absorb shocks and recover in a timely way.

This article provides insights into the economic impact of government actions in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in selected Sub-Saharan Africa countries, purposively selected. A fixed-effect modelling approach was utilised drawing on Oxford COVID-19 Government Response Tracker (OxCGRT) database from January 21 to September 17, 2020, in South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Tanzania and Uganda. Key findings entail those announcements of government lockdowns were positively related to COVID-19 cases and negatively related to restrictions on internal movement and interest rate decisions from the central banks. Governments' announcements regarding income support packages and debt relief were related to the increase in the number of COVID-19 cases. With most global economies grappling with a second wave, and the consequences of the first surge in both social well-being and economic growth, income and debt relief strategies should be continued to benefit households and companies. In addition, countries in the Africa-Sub Saharan region must create a relief fund to support members in distress. Finally, a sustainable regional model on business and tourism must be created to foster development and growth during periods of partial or total lockdown.

That economic globalisation is theoretically beneficial to developing countries’ growth and development is without doubt; that empirical literature has failed to ascertain the economic benefits of economic globalisation, particularly for developing countries, is again incontestable, but what has not been fully explored are the threshold conditions without which developing countries can make the most out of economic globalisation. This study analyses the preconditions that enhance the growth promoting effects of economic globalisation for sub-Saharan African countries over the period 2005–2020. Robust to alternative measures of economic globalisation, our results show that economic globalisation is desirable as a viable engine for growth in sub-Saharan Africa conditional on addressing country-specific structural weaknesses. A viable policy option is for Sub-Saharan African countries to seriously consider implementing a range of well-thought-out policies–both economic and social–so that the region can reap the full benefits of economic globalisation.

This article presents and discusses theoretical and conceptualmodels to measure the effectiveness of a state grant-funded programme. The models were used to formulate the perspectives and strategic objectives a state programme can consider to implement and evaluate performance. The behavioural experiments method was adopted to test the validity of the study assumptions. The methodological contribution of the study is the development and application of balanced scorecard perspectives broken down into key performance objectives and key performance indicators evaluated in terms of an effective level scale. The lowest effectiveness level implies that the overall performance is very low while the highest effectiveness level implies that the performance of the programme is optimised. The study contributes to the current debate and a deviation from previous research. The fact that there is a direct link between expectations of performance, effectiveness and the objectives of publicly-funded programmes is another empirical contribution worth pursuing.

This contribution explores the contemporary regulatory framework pertaining to waste pickers. It does so by analysing certain municipal bylaws in three metropolitan municipalities, namely the City of Johannesburg; Ekurhuleni and the City of Cape-Town, that impact upon these vulnerable workers. It additionally considers the protection offered to waste pickers by the Department of Water Affairs Minimum Requirements for Waste Disposal by Landfill and analyses the extent to which these minimum requirements create legally enforceable rights for waste pickers within the three metropolitan municipalities. It concludes with a range of policy suggestions for the extension of protection to a greater number of waste pickers.