Economics Of South African Townships

Countries everywhere are divided into two distinct spatial realms: one urban, one rural. Classic models of development predict faster growth in the urban sector, causing rapid migration from rural areas to cities and raising average incomes in both realms. South Africa faces an unconventional challenge in that it has symptoms of a spatial realm that is not rural and not fully urban. In many ways, South African townships--and especially informal settlements--are similar to slums in the developing world, although never was a slum formed with as much central planning and purpose as were some of the larger South African townships. Unlike urban slums, most townships and informal settlements are geographically distant from urban economic centers. The near absence of an affordable public transport system makes job seeking and other forms of economic integration prohibitively expensive. Motivated by the uniqueness of townships and informal settlements in South African economic and social life, Economics of South African Townships: Special Focus on Diepsloot seeks to develop a systematic understanding of the structure of the township economy, yielding a rich information base on the migration patterns to townships and informal settlements, changes in demographic profiles, labor market characteristics, and access to public and financial services. Economics of South African Townships then looks closely at Diepsloot--a large township in the Johannesburg Metropolitan Area--to vividly identify the economic realities and choices of township residents. Given the current dichotomous urban structure, modernizing the township economy and enabling its convergence with the much richer urban centers may unleash signifi cant productivity gains. Breaking out of the current low-level equilibrium, however, requires a comprehensive and holistic policy agenda, with signifi cant complementarities among the major policy reforms. Although the study tells a rich and coherent story about development patterns in South African townships and points to some broad policy directions, its research and analysis will generally need to be deepened before being translated into direct policy action.

Countries everywhere are divided within into two distinct spatial realms: one urban, one rural. Classic models of development predict faster growth in the urban sector, causing rapid migration from rural areas to cities, lifting average incomes in both places. The situation in South Africa throws up an unconventional challenge. The country has symptoms of a spatial realm that is not not rural, not fully urban, lying somewhat in limbo. This is the realm of the countrys townships and informal settlements (T&IS). In many ways, the townships and especially the informal settlements are similar to developing world slums, although never was a slum formed with as much central planning and purpose as were some of the larger South African townships. And yet, there is something distinct about the T&IS. For one thing, unlike most urban slums, most T&IS are geographically distant from urban economic centers. Exacerbated by the near absence of an affordable public transport system, this makes job seeking and other forms of economic integration prohibitively expensive. Motivated by their uniqueness and their special place in South African economic and social life, this study seeks to develop a systematic understanding of the structure of the township economy. What emerges is a rich information base on the migration patterns to T&IS, changes in their demographic profiles, their labor market characteristics, and their access to public and financial services. The study then look closely at Diepsloot, a large township in the Johannesburg Metropolitan Area, to bring out more vividly the economic realities and choices of township residents. Given the current dichotomous urban structure, modernizing the township economy and enabling its convergence with the much richer urban centers has the potential to unleash significant productivity gains. Breaking out of the current low-level equilibrium however will require a comprehensive and holistic policy agenda, with significant complementarities among the major policy reforms. While the study tells a rich and coherent story about development patterns in South African townships and points to some broad policy directions, its research and analysis will generally need to be deepened before being translated into direct policy action.

"Township Economy provides a unique insight into township informal business and entrepreneurship. It is set in the post-apartheid period, in the third decade of Africa's democracy and draws on evidence collected from 2010-2018 in 10 township sites, nine in South Africa and one in Namibia. The book focuses on micro-enterprises, the business strategies of township entrepreneurs and the impact of autonomous informal economic activities on urban life. The book is unique in approach and content. It looks at spatial influences at various gradients, from the city-wide level, to objects, to invisible infrastructure. The analysis examines the influence of power as a tool to dominate and control and thus constraint inclusive opportunities. This captivating book will be of interest academic researchers, university students and specialists in business studies, urbanism, politics and socio-economic development."--Back cover

Countries everywhere are divided within into two distinct spatial realms: one urban, one rural. Classic models of development predict faster growth in the urban sector, causing rapid migration from rural areas to cities, lifting average incomes in both places. The situation in South Africa throws up an unconventional challenge. The country has symptoms of a spatial realm that is not not rural, not fully urban, lying somewhat in limbo. This is the realm of the country’s townships and informal settlements (T&IS). In many ways, the townships and especially the informal settlements are similar to developing world slums, although never was a slum formed with as much central planning and purpose as were some of the larger South African townships. And yet, there is something distinct about the T&IS. For one thing, unlike most urban slums, most T&IS are geographically distant from urban economic centers. Exacerbated by the near absence of an affordable public transport system, this makes job seeking and other forms of economic integration prohibitively expensive. Motivated by their uniqueness and their special place in South African economic and social life, this study seeks to develop a systematic understanding of the structure of the township economy. What emerges is a rich information base on the migration patterns to T&IS, changes in their demographic profiles, their labor market characteristics, and their access to public and financial services. The study then look closely at Diepsloot, a large township in the Johannesburg Metropolitan Area, to bring out more vividly the economic realities and choices of township residents. Given the current dichotomous urban structure, modernizing the township economy and enabling its convergence with the much richer urban centers has the potential to unleash significant productivity gains. Breaking out of the current low-level equilibrium however will require a comprehensive and holistic policy agenda, with significant complementarities among the major policy reforms. While the study tells a rich and coherent story about development patterns in South African townships and points to some broad policy directions, its research and analysis will generally need to be deepened before being translated into direct policy action.

We must look beyond the now, the current economy on our doorstep, and ... reach out to a humanity that lies dormant in all of us. While the depth and sophistication of South Africa's financial and capital markets are lauded by indices the world over, South Africa is also considered to be the most unequal society in the world. The Economy On Your Doorstep probes the reasons for this tragic paradox of South African life and tries to go through and beyond the graphs, margin calls, trading updates, indices and earnings reports to explain how economic 'actions' frame the lives of South Africans in a transitional society faced with the challenges of unemployment, poverty and inequality. The economy is and always has been primarily about people. How they live, what they produce, under what conditions and what social, political and environmental factors influence decisions of consumption, investment and distribution, and how they act under conditions of uncertainty, scarcity, need and crisis. After all, economies are about people coming together to produce, exchange, distribute and consume goods and services that emerge from their communities and those of others. How and under what conditions can we ensure the expansion of our productive forces, while expanding access to the base of assets, services and support that allow for the social reproduction of our entire society and workforce? Ayabonga Cawe outlines some key areas that can and should define a policy agenda towards a 'people's economy' in South Africa and the long-term objectives of such a policy programme, and engages with the political economy of 21st century South Africa through an analysis of a few selected areas of the economy and the implications of this for policy action. This is what this book is about, an exposition of what we see around us and an explanation and discussion of possible ways beyond it. In this well-researched book, Ayabonga Cawe, a development economist, columnist and broadcaster, makes sense of the post-apartheid political economy through the lives of the many people who live and survive in it every day.

Master's Thesis from the year 2014 in the subject Business economics - Miscellaneous, grade: 1,3, University Witten/Herdecke, language: English, abstract: According to the "South African B2C E-Commerce Report 2012", South Africa was already in 2011 the fifth largest country in Africa in terms of the number of Internet users. Today in 2014, there are approximately 12,5 million South African Internet users . Since several years, the E-Commerce sector is facing a boom in South Africa. However, not everybody seems to profit from or participate in this boom. Economically and socially, South Africa is still deeply divided. The inequality within the population, the distance between rich and poor is extreme: The richest 20 percent of the population account for almost 70 percent of total income, the share of the poorest 20 percent is just under three percent. Almost a third (31.9%) of the population lives on the equivalent of less than 2 Dollars a day . Around seven million people are considered long-term unemployed with no job prospects, especially those living in informal settlements, the so-called „townships“. The social and economic inequality is a big problem for the country of South Africa. E-Commerce has the potential to resolve this problem, as it is booming and companies plan to extend their businesses as well as their employee numbers. The idea is to train people from the townships in order to get them to work in the E-Commerce business. Interesting for this thesis are those E-Commerce companies with big storage halls, as they are the ones who might be in need of untrained employees of the townships. Jobs could be needed in basic positions such as picking and packing, quality control and customer services in big warehouses. Supposed it would be actually possible to use training initiatives and programs in the form of cooperations of E-Commerce companies and township NGO ́s, resulting in dimishing unemployment and leading to permitting more people participate in the boom of E-Commerce, the South African economy and its society as a whole would gain a tremendous benefit. The research question in this master thesis is interlinking the existing economic boom of E-Commerce with the high unemployment rate in the townships: Does the fast-growing E-Commerce in South Africa have an effect on the high unemployment rate in the townships? In the quest for an answer to this question, attention is paid to two related questions as well: Do the lowest social classes feel an improvement in their living standards after being hired by an E-Commerce business?