eBook

Economics of South African townships

Mahajan, Sandeep

2014,2015

Overview

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, lifting average incomes in both places. The process continues until the marginal productivity of labor is equalized across the two realms. The pattern of rising urbanization accompanying economic growth has become one of the most visible and self-evident empirical facts of development across the world, with almost 200,000 people making the rural-to-urban trek every day, according to the United Nations. Cities across the world are powering growth, development, and modernization. The study then takes a close look at Diepsloot, a large township in the Johannesburg Metropolitan Area, to bring out more vividly the economic realities and choices of township residents. Although atypical in many ways, by the virtue of being newer, poorer, and more informal, with a bigger concentration of migrants (many of them foreign nationals), than the historically established townships, Diepsloot also retains many of the economic characteristics of South African townships: Issues of joblessness, uneven access to basic public services, and overwhelming levels of crime and violence are almost as pervasive in Diepsloot as they are in other T&IS. At the same time, an emergent informal sector more visibly pervades the township than seen in the average township, which makes it a particularly useful place to study in order to develop an understanding of the kinds of economic activities that are feasible in townships. It focuses particularly on the nature of business activity in the township, the key investment-climate constraints faced by its firms, income and expenditure patterns across households, and some aggregative social and human indicators. In a first attempt of its kind for a township, the report also develops a Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) of Diepsloot for a comprehensive and consistent picture of the place, including the circular flow of income within the township, the nature of its interaction with the rest of the South African economy, and a simple multiplier analysis of its economy.

• Publisher: THE WORLD BANK,World Bank,World Bank Publications,The World Bank,Washington, DC: World Bank Group,World Bank Group
• Subject: ACCESS TO CAPITAL / ACCESS TO CREDIT / ACCESS TO FINANCE / ACCESS TO FINANCIAL SERVICES / ACCESS TO FORMAL FINANCE / ACCESS TO SERVICES / ACCOUNTABILITY / ACCOUNTING / ADVANCED ECONOMIES / ADVANCED ECONOMY / AGRICULTURE / ANALYTICAL APPROACH / ARBITRAGE / BANK ACCOUNT / BANKING SECTOR / BANKING STRUCTURE / BANKS / Blacks / BORROWING / BUSINESS ACTIVITY / BUSINESS CENSUS / BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT / BUSINESS ENTERPRISE / BUSINESS ENTERPRISES / BUSINESS NETWORKS / BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES / BUSINESS OWNER / BUSINESS OWNERS / BUSINESS RECORDS / CAPACITY BUILDING / CAPITAL FLOWS / CAPITALIZATION / CENTRAL PLANNING / CHILD CARE / CIRCULAR FLOW / CITIES / Cities and towns / Cities and towns -- Growth -- Case studies / Cities and towns -- South Africa / COMMUNITIES / COMPARATIVE ADVANTAGES / COMPETITIVENESS / COMPUTER TRAINING / CONVERGENCE ECONOMICS / CREDITS / CRIME / CURRENT ACCOUNT / CUSTOMER BASE / CUSTOMER BASES / DECENTRALIZATION / DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILES / DESCRIPTION / DEVELOPMENT BANK / DEVELOPMENT ECONOMICS / DEVELOPMENT POLICIES / DEVELOPMENT POLICY / DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES / DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY / DEVOLUTION / DISCOURAGED WORKERS / DWELLING / DWELLING UNITS / ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES / ECONOMIC ACTIVITY / ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS / ECONOMIC COMPETITIVENESS / ECONOMIC CONDITIONS / ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT / ECONOMIC EFFICIENCY / ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT / ECONOMIC GROWTH / ECONOMIC INTEGRATION / ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES / ECONOMIC POLICY / ECONOMIC STATISTICS / ECONOMIC STRUCTURE / ECONOMIC STRUCTURES / ECONOMICS / ECONOMICS RESEARCH / EDUCATION LEVELS / EDUCATIONAL LEVEL / EMPLOYEE / EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES / EMPLOYMENT STATUS / ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT / ENTREPRENEUR / ENTREPRENEURIAL OPPORTUNITIES / ENTREPRENEURS / ENTREPRENEURSHIP / ENVIRONMENTAL ECONOMICS / EQUALIZATION / EXCLUSION / EXPENDITURE / EXPENDITURES / FAMILIES / FEMALE / FINANCE ACCESS / FINANCIAL SECTOR / FINANCIAL SECTOR DEVELOPMENT / FINANCIAL SERVICE / FINANCIAL SERVICE PROVIDERS / FIXED CAPITAL / FIXED COSTS / FORMAL ECONOMIES / GDP / GDP PER CAPITA / GENDER / GNP / GREATER ACCESS / GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT / GROSS NATIONAL PRODUCT / GROWTH POLICIES / GROWTH POTENTIAL / GROWTH RATE / HOUSEHOLD ACCESS / HOUSEHOLD INCOME / HOUSEHOLDS / HOUSING / HOUSING DEMAND / HUMAN CAPITAL / HUMAN SETTLEMENTS / INCOME LEVELS / INDICATORS OF ACCESS / INEQUALITY / INFORMAL ECONOMY / INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS / INSURANCE / INTEGRATED DEVELOPMENT / INTERNATIONAL BANK / INTERNATIONAL FINANCE / JOB CREATION / JOB OPPORTUNITIES / Johannesburg / KEY CHALLENGES / LABOR FORCE PARTICIPATION / LABOR FORCE SURVEY / LABOR MARKET / LABOR MARKETS / LABOUR MARKET / LACK OF ACCESS / LAND DEVELOPMENT / LAND OWNERSHIP / LAND USE / LAWS / LEGISLATION / LIVING ARRANGEMENTS / LIVING CONDITIONS / LIVING STANDARDS / LOAN / LOCAL GOVERNMENTS / MACROECONOMICS / MARGINAL PRODUCTIVITY / MERCHANTS / MIGRATION / MULTIPLIER EFFECTS / MULTIPLIERS / MUNICIPALITIES / NATIONAL INCOME / NEIGHBORHOOD / PENSIONS / PERMANENT RESIDENTS / POLITICAL ECONOMY / POPULATION DISTRIBUTION / PRIVATE INVESTMENT / PRIVATE PROPERTY / PROFITABLE BUSINESSES / PROPERTY RIGHTS / PUBLIC FINANCE / PUBLIC HOUSING / PUBLIC SERVICES / PUBLIC TRANSPORT / PURCHASING POWER / RATES OF RETURN / REAL ESTATE / RED TAPE / REGRESSION ANALYSES / REGRESSION ANALYSIS / RETAIL ENTERPRISE / RISK PERCEPTIONS / RURAL AREAS / RURAL DEVELOPMENT / RURAL ECONOMY / SAFETY / SALES TAXES / SAVINGS / SAVINGS BEHAVIOR / SEGMENTATIONS / SELF-EMPLOYMENT / SETTLEMENT / SHANTYTOWNS / SHOPS / SINGLE MOTHER / SLUM / SLUMS / SMALL BUSINESSES / SMALL ENTERPRISES / SMALL-BUSINESS / SOCIAL BARRIERS / SOCIAL NETWORKS / SOCIAL RIGHTS / SOCIAL SECURITY / SOCIAL SERVICES / SOURCE OF INCOME / SOURCES OF INCOME / South Africa / SPATIAL PLANNING / Squatter settlements / START-UP / START-UP CAPITAL / START-UPS / SUPPLY CHAINS / SURPLUS LABOR / TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE / TELECOMMUNICATIONS / TRADE BALANCE / TRADITIONAL ECONOMY / TRANSPORT / UNEMPLOYMENT / UNEMPLOYMENT RATE / UNEMPLOYMENT RATES / UNEQUAL ACCESS / UNION / URBAN AREAS / URBAN DEVELOPMENT / Urban economics / URBAN ECONOMY / URBAN POLICY / URBAN POPULATION / URBANIZATION / WAGES / WOMAN / WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS / WORKING CAPITAL / YOUTH
• ISBN: 9781464803017, 1464803013