Completed research

Working paper

Tax-motivated transfer mispricing in South Africa: Direct evidence using transaction data

by Ludvig Wier

This paper provides the first direct systematic evidence of profit shifting through transfer mispricing in a developing country. Using South African transaction-level customs data, I directly test for transfer price deviations from arm’s-length pricing. I...

November, 2018

Enterprise development

News

Press Release: Finance Minister finds promise in SA-TIED initiative

Today, Finance Minister Tito Mboweni highlighted an initiative that aims to promote inclusive economic growth in the region through evidence-based policy creation. Mboweni’s comments came during his maiden Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement in Parliament. He...

24 October 2018

Working paper

Employer characteristics and youth employment outcomes in the formal sector in South Africa

by Stewart Ngandu and Carolyn Chisadza

This paper uses administrative tax data in South Africa to answer questions about which types of firms employ relatively large numbers of young people. The policy objective of this exercise is to use these insights...

August 2018

Enterprise development

Working paper

On the persistence of growth for South African firms

by Mulalo Mamburu

This paper examines the distribution of firms by size and growth in the South African economy. It explores the relationship between firm size and firm growth over time, with a particular focus on the highest...

July 2018

Enterprise development

Working paper

How large is the wage penalty in the labour broker sector? Evidence for South Africa using administrative data

by Aalia Cassim and Daniela Casale

This paper makes use of the administrative panel data for the years 2011 to 2015 to explore whether there is a wage penalty for employees in the labour broker sector, examining both the base wage...

May 2018

Enterprise development

Working paper

Innovation activity in South Africa: Measuring the returns to R&D

by Andre Steenkamp, Mark Schaffer, Wayde Flowerday, and John Gabriel Goddard

This paper aims to enhance our understanding of the dynamics of innovation practice and technology absorption in South Africa at the firm level by estimating the returns to R&D expenditure in the manufacturing sector. This...

March 2018

Enterprise development

News

New collaborative programme focusing on economic transformation and inequality launched with South African government and other regional organizations

UNU-WIDER launched its newest programme ‘Southern Africa – Towards Inclusive Economic Development (SA-TIED)’ on 30 November 2017 in Pretoria, South Africa. Together with the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and a number of South...

11 December 2017

Enterprise development

Public revenue

Labour market and inequality

Macro-fiscal analysis

Climate and energy

Reform implementation

Phase 1 regional growth