The South African Civil Society Information Service
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question:
How do we make democracy work for the poor?
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question:
How do we make democracy work for the poor?
SACSIS promotes the principle of just economies. We are opposed to economic development that violates social and economic rights and increases inequalities in the pursuit of economic growth.
Ebrahim-Khalil Hassen -
Common sense suggests that budgets follow plans, not the other way around. Beyond the headline results of the budget, a closer look at the finance minister’s 2014 budget reveals significant contradictions and suggests a disconnect concerning the relationship between plans and budgets. Consequently, the minister’s budget allocations are far from optimal for us to reach the twin goals of reducing unemployment and decreasing inequality.
Minister Pravin Gordhan once tabled the idea...
Glenn Ashton -
As an emerging market South Africa finds itself amongst a raft of emerging nations in increasing peril in the ocean of international currency markets, with value being speculatively eroded by the predator sharks of the casino economy. The prospect of rescue by capital institutions in the developed world appears slim.
Instead commercial and central banks, along with institutions like the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, disinterestedly observe the carnage. It is unsurprising that...
Ebrahim-Khalil Hassen -
“A rising tide lifts all boats.” This aphorism means that in a growing economy everyone benefits, and by extension that government’s role is to focus on the macroeconomic environment. Moreover, it suggests that distributional changes occur after economic growth. In the days following the end of the cold war, this was the conventional wisdom emerging from the World Economic Forum. Today, that singular faith in the power of economic growth is fraying, even at Davos....
Leonard Gentle -
The decision of the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA) to cut ties with the African National Congress (ANC) has received poor analysis. Comment has tended to focus on the possibility of a new political party in 2019 or whether all this means that Zwelenzima Vavi will get his job back. As such, the greater significance of the biggest trade union in the country throwing in its lot with a growing movement in opposition to the neo-liberal order, and thus to the left of the...
Saliem Fakir -
Economic crises always present opportunities to rethink the conventional economic model whatever hue it may take. Some of these debates are raging at the World Economic Forum at present.
South African debates on economic policy matters are out of touch with the emergence of fresh thinking amongst mainstream economists in different parts of the world.
Those who follow John Maynard Keynes examine his ideas with a fresh pair of eyes and those that defend the tradition of the trio of...
Frank Meintjies -
The recent resignation by NUMSA president Cedric Gina is another rip in the fabric of the trade union federation, COSATU. Given that a breakup of COSATU will weaken labour’s voice as a counterpoint to the strength of capital and the state, this development again raises the question as to what is to be done to save the situation.
By now, all those who follow current affairs are familiar with the features of the split. The broad pattern harks back to COSATU’s formation.
The...
