Tag: Eustace Davie

James Meade, British recipient of the Nobel Prize in economics, reported in 1961 that Mauritius faced a bleak future. The country was reliant on a single crop (sugar), subject to weather and price shocks, threatened by over-population, had no potential alternative job opportunities, was multi-ethnic, had large income inequalities, and had experienced political conflict.

The messaging from the State of the Nation Address (SONA), hosted 10 February 2022 for the first time outside the halls of Parliament, was both encouraging and disheartening. We are glad to hear the President, the Chief of the Executive, unequivocally state that the body responsible for job creation was not government, but rather, the private sector.

South Africa ranks 84th out of 165 countries and territories included in the Economic Freedom of the World: 2021 Annual Report, that we have released in conjunction with Canada’s Fraser Institute. In 2000, South Africa ranked 58th on the list of countries analysed.

Mauritius is of serious significance to countries in the Africa sphere. Its high ranking means that the economy of the country is organised in a manner that brings great benefits to its inhabitants. This island country is ranked 7th out of 162 countries in the Economic Freedom of the World Report 2020. 

Winning the rugby World Cup has shown what South Africans can do if they put aside differences and work together. What can we do to allow the spirit and courage that the Springboks displayed on the rugby field to spill over into the hearts and minds of all South Africans?

A market for electricity has a salutary effect on the behaviour of all the participants in the generation and supply of electricity. Generating plants, transmission grids, distribution grids, wholesalers and retailers, all behave differently when they compete for business with alternative suppliers.

'Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?' is a Latin phrase used by the Roman poet Juvenal, which can be translated to mean 'who will protect us from our protectors?'

In 2005, former President Mbeki committed his government to an economic growth target of 6 per cent, but only after 2010. For the interim five years a more modest target of 4.5 per cent was envisaged.

Much is written about inequality, decrying high salaries paid by companies to their executives as being one of its main causes, while no consideration is given, or attention paid to the plight of the unemployed. Those who earn zero! Why is government grinding them into the ground with job deprivation laws?

Tragedies, such as legislated racism and disrespect for individual and property rights are generally manufactured by individuals with malign political intentions. The adoption of The Natives’ Land Act, 1913, is a historical example of this kind of political manipulation and these tragic consequences are with us today. Unfortunately, South Africans appear to be about to once again become the victims of the same kind of political manipulation.