OpenUCT :: Browsing by Author "Hartzenberg, Trudi"

Browsing by Author "Hartzenberg, Trudi"

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Open Access
An analysis of South Africa exports to the United States under the African Growth Opportunity Act
(2015) Chinembiri, Evans Wally Kudzai; Hartzenberg, Trudi
The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) is a unilateral trade policy concession governing United States - Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) trade and investment relations. AGOA provides United States market access for 40 SSA countries, including South Africa. This piece of legislation has the fundamental objective of facilitating the global integration of SSA countries into the world economy by extending preferential access to the United States market for exporters from eligible countries. Over the past decade, AGOA has emerged as a topical issue as scholars and policy makers sought to understand its impact on SSA, especially South Africa. This has been awarded more impetus given its pending expiration in 2015. This, naturally, raised questions about the performance of United States preference programs (such as AGOA) as part of a larger ongoing debate on the form that United States preference programs may take in the foreseeable future. With South Africa facing a serious opposition to inclusion in the next shape of AGOA given the number of trade agreements South Africa has signed with countries that are competitors to United States in certain product categories. This study will seek to highlight the importance of the AGOA dispensation to South Africa, and through that analysis make a case for the continued inclusion of South Africa in the future trade dispensations that may develop. This study focuses on two research objectives; firstly, the study seeks to assess the extent to which increased preferential access to the United States market has translated into a real and tangible increase in exports from South Africa to the United States. Secondly, the study seeks to identify the areas where South Africa and the United States have high trade potential, and help make a case for inclusion of these high potential trade products in the next iteration of the AGOA dispensation. In achieving the first research objective, the study carried out a detailed trade statistics analysis with the hope of gaining greater understanding of the extent to which AGOA has influenced trade patterns between the United States and South Africa. South Africa's trade figures show that the United States is an important trade partner. A key conclusion that can be drawn from the analysis is the observation that a fair amount of growth in South Africa's exports to the United States is fundamentally characterized by two key aspects namely; growth in specific commodities and an export base that is becoming gradually concentrated over time. This implies that trade between South Africa and the United States is shifting towards a new focus in line with AGOA incentives and by extension one may conclude that South African firms are utilizing the market opportunities and the networks that enable them to effectively exploit the United States market. In fulfilling the second research objective, the detailed trade potential analysis that is propped up by a robust analysis of trade trends was carried out. The trade potential analysis identified thirteen commodity groups as having high potential for further exports into the United States market, and Pearls, precious stones and metals were identified as having the highest indicative trade potential, although the picture changes as the data is further disaggregated. This suggests that there is enormous potential and a great scope for export of pearls, precious stones and metals to the United States.
Open Access
The decline of piston manufacturers in the Southern African Customs Union
(2015) Tshabalala, Sipho Aubrey; Hartzenberg, Trudi
During the period of the years 1952 to 2009, there have been only two automotive piston manufacturers in the Southern African Customs Union (SACU). SACU is comprised of the following five member states; South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and Swaziland. Owing to the SACU agreement, these countries have enjoyed fairly good trade flows in goods and services amongst each other. The role of the abovementioned piston manufacturers was the provision of piston components to engine assembling companies in the SACU region as well as for sale to the aftermarket.
Open Access
Energy related services in Kenya: Implications of unbundling the electricity sector on trade in services negotiations
(2017) Mburu, Emily Njeri; Hartzenberg, Trudi
Electricity is a basic infrastructural service necessary for the achievement of developmental outcomes. The use of electricity, specifically, serves economic as well as social needs. It is universally accepted that electrification enhances quality of life at the household level and stimulates the economy at a broader level. Given its substantial benefits, electrification together with other sources of modern energy such as renewable energy, has been identified as essential for fulfilling the Millennium Development Goals (UNDP, 2005). In most cases, the main challenge in the achievement of these goals is the bundled nature of the electricity supply chain in majority of developing countries. This necessitated the need for policy reforms with the aim of unbundling the sector in Kenya. The literature review sets out to consider the main features of the electricity sector to better understand the legal and regulatory reforms that have taken place in the electricity sector and the impact of the liberalization on rural electrification and the poor in society. It takes note of the changing role of government in the sector with the liberalization and privatization, which has entailed the unbundling of the vertically integrated state-owned utility that has led to the introduction of competition in some segments of the electricity sector value chain such as generation and distribution. In addition, the review considers the classification related issues arising from the reforms that have taken place in the electricity sector and the regulatory imperatives for a competitive electricity services sector. Finally, a review of the reforms in the electricity sector in Kenya is assessed together with the impact of the reforms. Furthermore, the necessary regulatory disciplines instrumental in cross-border trade in electricity services are identified. The rationale of the study focuses mostly on the phenomenological (qualitative) and positivistic (quantitative) types of research. The focus was on identifying, analyzing and reporting patterns (themes) within data to facilitate a clear understanding of the electricity services sector in Kenya. Furthermore, the chapter on methodology presents the research population, sampling strategy, data collection, frame of analysis and a summary of how the data was analysed. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the questions. The findings and discussion sections of the study are focused on the reforms in the electricity services sector in Kenya, the pro-competitive regulations for an effectively liberalized electricity sector, and the resultant electricity-related services. Due to the complexity of the issues in the sector, interviewees preferred to be provided with the questionnaire instead of face-to-face or telephonic interviews. The questionnaire consisted of two sections, namely the respondent's demographics and reforms in the electricity sector in Kenya. The questionnaire targeted key stakeholders in the sector and was sent to eighteen potential respondents, and of these, only fourteen were responsive. The study concludes that reforms in the electricity sector in Kenya have brought about clarity in terms of the services that are embedded in the sector and identified the key regulatory elements necessary to enhance competition in the sector. The new services that have surfaced in Kenya, include geothermal exploration, grid connectivity through KENTRACO, generating electricity from crude oil, and ensuring that more households are connected to the national grid through the rural electrification project.
Open Access
Export taxes as a trade policy tool in Malawi: the case of timber products
(2015) Mkumba, Maxwell Young; Hartzenberg, Trudi
The study examines the export tax as a trade policy tool in Malawi, with a specific focus on the timber industry. This study was motivated by the sudden imposition of an export tax on timber trade by the Malawi Government in 2011, as a reactive policy to an upsurge in timber exports from Malawi. The objective of the study was, therefore, to investigate why the Malawi Government decided to impose the export tax, and whether this trade policy tool has been effective in meeting the objectives. In this regard, the study was done in a broad manner to cover both the theoretical aspects of the export tax, as a trade policy tool, and the practical realities about the Malawi Government's management of the forestry sector and the timber trading in an environment where the Government decided to join the global rules-based trading system. The study used a descriptive explanatory design, employing qualitative methods that involved the use of questionnaires and analysis of the existing literature. The results revealed that an export tax is a duty that is applied on products before they are exported in order to achieve certain objectives, which include government revenue collection, domestic price stabilization, achieving food security, or promoting value addition, hence, industrial development. The review of the literature has demonstrated that care should be exercised when adopting this policy tool because export taxes can be trade-restricting and welfare diminishing on a country, or can constitute a "beggar-thy-neighbour" policy when not properly designed. It is in consideration of such consequences that it has now become fashionable for modern free trade agreements (FTAs) to include provisions on export taxes. For instance, the SADC Protocol on Trade includes Article 5 which prohibits Member States from applying any export duties on goods for export to other Member States. However, from the study, it has been established that if the export taxes are properly designed and implemented, they can boost Government revenue and catalyse industrial productivity. In this respect, evidence has shown that the Government imposed the export tax on timber to curb influx of foreign traders who have been buying the timber because it was cheaper that the timber found in the neighbouring countries. This was a reactionary use of export tax as a trade policy tool, rather than taking a proactive approach to ensure that the Government achieves the policy objectives. Thus, the available literature has shown that the Government could combine the various objectives for introducing the export tax on timber. In this regard, the efficacy of the export taxes depends on the creation of proper linkages with other policy initiatives, such as existence of local knowledge, technological development and processing capacity for increased local production to meet high standards of the international market. Thus, while the Malawi Government can maintain the export tax on timber, it should be done with a very clear objectives and timeframe for using it as a trade policy tool. The Government can combine a number of policy objectives, such as, revenue generation and use the proceeds to undertake re-afforestation programme and protect the environment while, at the same time, encouraging value addition or encouraging global value chains. Such initiatives have the capacity to generate economic gains because as the country builds the productive capacities, there is employment creation and use of other domestically produced inputs or raw materials. In this respect, it is important that the pricing of timber or forestry products should also reflect the appropriate or true economic rent, which should be levied from the use of the natural resource. The study has, therefore, revealed that the Malawi Government should review the method of collecting the export taxes to ensure maximum compliance, curb corruption, and avoid loss of foreign exchange earnings. The Government should devise other ways of collecting the export taxes than at the points of exit or the designated borders. One recommendation is for the Government to place the Malawi Revenue Authority officials at the sites where the timber is harvested, and make such sites as the collection points. More importantly, the study recommends that Government should conduct civic education campaigns targeted towards timber producers and exporters, highlighting the benefits of the export taxes to avoid illegal trade and corruption. The study has further revealed that it is possible for the Government to increase the stumpage fee to the levels that would be comparable to the stumpage fees in other countries such as Kenya, South Africa, and Tanzania.
Open Access
The importance of road transport infrastructure development and maintenance in trade facilitation : a South African case
(2015) Kgamanyane, Moeti; Hartzenberg, Trudi
Road transportation is the most frequently used means of transporting goods and people in much of sub-Saharan Africa. Furthermore, because of the region's geographic nature, where many of the countries are landlocked, imports and exports of goods happen primarily by land and in this case by road transport. This is primarily due to the fact that other means of surface transportation like rail and navigable rivers are not well developed. Nonetheless, the lack of complementarity between the two land transportation modes, that is rail and road, has led to the over usage of the road. This has invariably led to congestion and deterioration of the road network with minimal investment in both the development and maintenance of the road infrastructure. Though there is an acknowledgement of this problem and attempts to address it through efforts like the Programme for Infrastructural Development in Africa (PIDA), and regionally in SADC thorough the adoption of the SADC Regional Infrastructure Development Master Plan Vision 2027 (RIDMP), much effort still needs to be put within individual countries to develop and maintain primary road networks that are able to connect to regional trade corridors.
Open Access
Integrating Lesotho economy into the regional automotive value chain : manufacturing of car-seat covers
(2015) Sekonyela, Malira Patience; Hartzenberg, Trudi
The purpose of this study was to analyse the Automotive Industry in Southern Africa, to assess how best Lesotho can contribute to this supply chain. This analysis was done to better understand the sector, to identify Lesotho's potential to produce car seat covers for South African automotive assembly plants, and find the best trade policies and programmes to support value chains in the sector. The plan was to assess the possibility for Lesotho made automotive components manufacturers to supply the Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs - the main automotive assembly plants), and use the South African Automotive Industry as the entry point for the Lesotho components to penetrate the Regional Automotive Value Chain. The main focus of this study was the manufacturing of car-seat covers to supply the seven Original Equipment Manufacturers namely: Volkswagen, BMW, Renault, Toyota, Daimler Chrysler, Ford and Mercedes Benz. The impact of Motor Industry Development Programme (MIDP) and Automotive Production and Development Programme (APDP) on the industry was assessed. The impact of the APDP on relocation of components manufacturers to other Southern African Customs Union (SACU) countries was assessed, Lesotho being used as a case study. It set out to find out if Lesotho firms have the potential to contribute to the automotive value chains through manufacture of car seat covers.
Open Access
The Helderberg Basin: regional and local economic development issues
(1995) Teixeira, Catherine; Hartzenberg, Trudi
The Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) has been described as an integrated, coherent socio-economic policy framework which seeks to mobilise all our people and our country's resources toward redressing the imbalances of apartheid and building a democratic, non-racial and non-sexist future. An integrated and sustainable programme, based on, and driven by, the people, that provides peace and security for all and builds the nation, links reconstruction and development and deepens democracy - these are the basic principles of the RDP. To this end, meeting basic needs, developing our human resources, building the economy, democratising the state and society and implementing the RDP are the key policy programmes contained in the RDP (African National Congress 1994).
Open Access
Trade facilitation in southern Africa : a case study for Zimbabwe
(2015) Mureverwi, Brian; Hartzenberg, Trudi
The recent adoption of the Trade Facilitation Agreement by WTO members in 2014 renewed the global impetus to ease the movement of goods. Developing countries in Sub Saharan Africa have joined the global community in this regard. It has been noted that although tariffs in developing countries have been lowered, numerous non-tariff barriers and non-tariff measures are stifling trade. Cumbersome border processes have added avoidable costs to trade. In this study, we examine the challenges being faced in Zimbabwe in the transboundary movement of goods. The study makes use the World Bank database on Trading Across Border, Logistics Performance Indicators, and the Ad Valorem Equivalent by the World Bank's Economic and Social Community for Asia and Pacific. The data is compared with South Africa, Zambia, OECD High Income Countries, and East Asia. The findings show that, it is a huge challenge to move goods in Zimbabwe. In other words, doing business with Zimbabwe is not for the faint at heart. These challenges emanate from exorbitant administrative fees, high document requirements, and time delay constraints. These costly non-tariff barriers present a costly murky trade protectionism. The entire logistics chain and infrastructure system need to be revamped to improve reliability and minimise trade costs. When compared to ad valorem equivalent, Zimbabwe trade costs with South Africa and Zambia in agriculture are in excess of 100%, while those for the manufactured goods average 65%. The high trade costs in agriculture are high mainly due to excess requirements in terms of processes and procedures to move goods across borders. Combining trade costs data with specific knowledge on trade facilitation, logistics and trade policy will provide a comprehensive diagnosis that will help to prioritize reform packages that carry maximum impact. In light of these findings, the research recommends to customs officials and government policy makers, areas to address in the entire trade facilitation process that will bring huge impact in terms of removal of border inefficiencies, minimising of trade costs, and improvement of the logistics chain. These recommendations range from the establishment of single window system, integrated border management, and one stop border posts as part of the entire process under trade facilitation.
Open Access
Understanding world and South African trade in services
(1997) Hodge, James; Hartzenberg, Trudi
Services trade has become a signiﬁcant component of world trade and has been given more academic proﬁle since its inclusion in the Uruguay Round of GATT trade talks. However, the paucity of academic work means that services trade is still poorly understood and lacks signiﬁcant statistical analysis. This research begins by analysing the characteristics of different service types using South African output, capital, employment and wage data. This demonstrates that consumer services tend to be labour-intensive while producer and community/social services tend to be capital- and skill- intensive. Then IMF balance of payments data and World Bank output data for all world regions is used to calculate the cause of growth in services trade, the product structure of traded services and the export and import performance of countries from different regions and development stages. It is found that producer services account for almost 2/3's of traded services followed by consumer services with around 30%. Industrial countries dominate services trade to a far greater extent than goods trade yet this dominance is diminishing due to the growing share of the Asian developing economies. Further analysis of service trade patterns ﬁnds that although traditional trade theory and its extensions account for much of what is observed, it needs to be augmented by the strong inﬂuences of geographical proximity, policy distortions and the level of other trade and investment that a country engages in. A mix of IMF and SARB data is used to construct a service trade data set for South Africa which complies with the new IMF BPM5 deﬁnitions. This data reveals the poor performance of South African service exports which have been stunted to a large degree by sanctions and geographic isolation from the large growth regions of the world. A closer inspection of the product mix reveals that exports are dominated by the labour-intensive travel sector with particularly poor performance within the business services sector. Imports are dominated by the capital-intensive transportation sector. A regional breakdown of trade reveals the dominance of trade with the African and European regions - signs of the importance of regional proximity and trade and investment links in services trade.

Browsing by Author "Hartzenberg, Trudi"

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