Although Van Riebeeck already produced the first wine at the Cape in 1659, the arrival of French Huguenots during 1688/89 gave considerable impetus to Cape wine production. The reasons for this remain unclear. By using quantitative production data over more than a century of European settlement,...

Economists regard information and feedback as important ways for self-correction in a system. This study analyses one aspect of information and feedback in the South African education system. Continuous assessment (CASS) carries a 25% weight in the final matriculation (Grade 12) mark and, more...

The conventional view is that a monetary policy shock has both supply-side and demand-side effects, at least in the short run. Barth and Ramey (2001) show that the supply-side effect of a monetary policy shock may be greater than the demand-side effect. We argue that it is crucial for monetary...

The paper estimates the impact of the South African Child Support Grant (CSG) on child health, nutrition and education. Data from the 2008 South African National Income Dynamics Study (NIDS) are used. Two non-experimental treatment evaluation techniques, both relying on propensity scores, are...

Nationalisation is high on the policy agenda in South Africa. This paper considers the case for nationalising the local mining sector from an evidence-based perspective. The relevant evidence is derived from theoretical considerations and related to the known features of the South African mining...

Many recent descriptive studies find convex schooling-earnings profiles in developing countries. In these countries forward-looking students should attach option values to completing lower levels of schooling. Another option value may arise due to the uncertain economic environment in which the...

The "bimodal" pattern of performance observed in South Africa illustrates the persistence with which learners of former Black schools continue to lag behind their "advantaged" counterparts. It is posited that the poor functioning of former Black schools accounts for this result. A nationally...

This paper asks whether income mobility in South Africa over the last decade has indeed been as impressive as currently thought. Using new national panel data (NIDS), substantial measurement error in reported income data is found, which is further corroborated by a provincial income data panel...

Competition policy investigations usually commence with a definition of the relevant product and geographic market. The relevant market provides a first evaluation of competitive conditions and allows for the calculation of market shares, which aids in the assessment of firms’ market power....

Forecasting accuracy is important for fiscal policy credibility. Three questions are posed. Firstly, are the forecasts by South Africa’s National Treasury good, compared to those of non-government economists? The paper compares Treasury’s forecasts to non-government projections and to those...