Welcome to Ersa
Economic Research Southern Africa is a research programme which is being funded by the National Treasury of South Africa and is hosted at the University of Cape Town in the School of Economics.
ERSA Scholarships 2009
ERSA is funding post-graduate scholarships for masters or doctoral study in Economics in 2009. Each scholarship will be worth R80 000 per annum, with funding awarded to full time students. ERSA seeks to build long-term excellence in research and policy analysis in the field of economics. Academic excellence in economics is therefore a necessary criterion for eligibility. Applicants must provide a convincing demonstration of the ability to succeed in a credible postgraduate programme in economics. Click here for more information. Download the application questionnaire.
Workshops and Conferences
An ERSA Networking Workshop on Promoting Economic History in Southern Africa - 25 - 26 September 2008, Makaranga Lodge, Durban
Internationally, Economic History as research field has gained considerable momentum in the last 5 - 10 years. The quantitative approach to economic history has driven much of this enthusiasm due to its promise of new ways to give substance to economic theories. At MIT, for example, Economic History has become a compulsory course in the graduate programme. However, this surge in popularity remains largely absent in South Africa.
The aim of the workshop is to bring together current researchers in the field of Economic History, as well as researchers in related fields such as business and management history working on South Africa and Southern Africa, to find ways of popularising the subject, and to provide a forum for researchers to present their work in progress. As the workshop intends to build a network in this research area, participation is welcome even without paper contributions. (Further info......)
In the Media
South Africa needs more than disciplined fiscal policy to increase its savings rate
Read more.
National Saving and Fiscal Policy in South Africa: an Empirical Analysis
While it is good news that prudent fiscal policy has translated into positive and rising government savings levels from 1996 onwards, new academic research has found that this has failed to stimulate saving in the private sector. Read more
Discretionary savings crowded out
COMPULSORY retirement savings through pension and provident funds, have replaced discretionary savings efforts in South Africa. However, the taxing of benefits paid to
beneficiaries of these institutional savings has seriously eroded their appetite for saving and thereby boosted their consumption levels. Read more
Retirement savings boost consumption, at the expense of total savings
Taxation of benefits paid from retirement funds could alter savings and investment behaviour. Read more.
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Latest Publications
Working Papers
Estimation of the aggregate agricultural supply response in Zimbabwe: The ARDL approach to cointegration
Edwin Muchapondwa
What’s in a name? Racial identity and altruism in post-apartheid South Africa
Wilhelm Gerhard van der Merwe and Justine Burns
Asset pricing in a Lucas "fruit-tree' economy with non-additive beliefs
Alexander Zimper
Testing Creative Destruction in an Opening Economy: the Case of the South African Manufacturing Industries
Philippe Aghion, Johannes Fedderke, Peter Howitt, Chandana Kularatne and Nicola Viegi
Policy Papers
Infrastructure Development and Economic Growth in South Africa: A review of the accumulated evidence
Johannes Fedderke and Rob Garlick, Policy Paper 12
The impact of tobacco advertising bans on consumption - a cross country approach including developing countries
Evan Blecher, Policy Paper 13
Blogging Away
ERSA has its own blog. For up to date information, latest publications or if you want to comment about our site visit our blog.
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