“Concrete ways” to stimulate faster economic growth, generate jobs and lift living standards are the substance of an address this morning by Dr John Endres, CEO of the IRR, at the University of the Free State (UFS).
This event was co-hosted by the Centre for Gender and Africa Studies at UFS and the Institute of Race Relations.
This morning’s lecture, titled “Taking the brakes off South Africa’s economy”, is published in full today under Opinions. It is based on the IRR’s Blueprint for Growth series of research papers, which set out how the economy is capable of performing far better if key impediments are removed.
The IRR warns, however, that those impediments are multiplying. New BEE regulations and draft procurement rules add to the compliance burden on businesses already struggling to grow and hire. The Expropriation Act has unsettled property rights. The Madlanga Commission has drawn attention to something more alarming: criminal networks, with apparent ANC-linked involvement and complicity from some state organs, are attacking property rights from below.
These factors deter investment and depress economic growth. Fixed investment, an essential ingredient of job-creating economic growth, is below 15% of GDP – far below the world average of 26%, and only around half the rate of emerging markets. South Africa’s economy is capable of far better, but specific government policies are suppressing it.
Dr Endres notes: “South Africa got a small lift in economic mood when the GNU came into office. Much of that has dissipated. The country feels stuck. The IRR has developed concrete ways to get South Africa’s economy growing much faster, generating jobs and lifting living standards. The sooner we start, the better.”