Effects of Public Investment in the Green & Care Economies & Public Infrastructure in South Africa

SCIS invites you to the launch of a Working Paper titled The Effects of Public Investment in the Green and Care Economies and Public Infrastructure in SA

The Public Economy Project (PEP) at the Southern Centre for Inequality Studies (SCIS) invites you to the launch of their Working Paper titled The Effects of Public Investment in the Green and Care Economies and Public Infrastructure in South Africa. The webinar will take place on 5 September 2024, 13:30 - 15:00.  Join our speakers Professor Ozlem Onaran and Dr. Cem Oyvat, Adam Aboobaker, and Kate Phillip in what promises to be an insightful session. 

Abstract:
This paper argues that a comprehensive combination of policy tools is required to trigger the necessary and urgent level of public investment needed to confront the complex crises of growth, inequality, care, and climate change in South Africa. South Africa confronts considerable macroeconomic policy challenges, most notably the need to attain sustainable and inclusive economic growth. According to the National Treasury, South Africa's growth averaged a mere 1.75% per annum between 2010 and 2019, a figure that drops further if the COVID-19 impacted years of 2020 and 2021 are taken into account. The South African National Treasury asserts that fiscal policy encompasses decisions involving the level and composition of government spending, tax revenue generation, and government borrowing, if any. Since 2013, a strategy of fiscal consolidation has been pursued with the aim of slowing the rate of growth in public spending while also enhancing tax revenues. However, the self-defeating consequences of actual reductions in public spending have resulted in a decline in public expenditure on public services, primarily due to the rapid growth in spending on debt service costs. Conversely, this paper contends that increasing, rather than cutting, public expenditure on the care economy, green economy, and public infrastructure would enhance South Africa's GDP and employment levels and result in changes in public debt/GDP ratios. This study advocates for the adoption of expansionary fiscal policy choices in conjunction with clearly defined development targets and coordinated fiscal, monetary, industrial, labour, and social policies. 

To read the Working Paper: Click here 

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