The poverty implications of high oil prices in South Africa

2012 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 293-313 ◽  
Author(s):  
Margaret Chitiga ◽  
Ismael Fofana ◽  
Ramos Mabugu
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Government Policy ◽  
Petroleum Industry ◽  
Policy Instruments ◽  
Oil Prices ◽  
Government Revenue ◽  
Price Increases ◽  
Price Subsidy ◽  
The Government ◽  
Poverty Indicators

AbstractAn energy-focused macro-micro approach is used to assess the poverty implications of government policy response to increases in international oil prices in South Africa. The first scenario assumes that increases in international oil prices are passed on to end users with no changes in government policy instruments. In this scenario, poverty indicators increase. The second scenario assumes that the world price increases are nullified by a price subsidy by the government. This scenario still leads to an increase in poverty as the beneficial price effect is cancelled out by a decline in households’ income induced by the financing method used. While revenue generated from a 50 per cent tax on windfall profit of the petroleum industry helps to minimize the loss in government revenue, it does not contribute to mitigating the increasing poverty trend, since the decline in saving and investment under this scenario restricts the country's growth, employment and income distribution perspectives.

scholarly journals Review: Challenges and opportunities for revitalising smallholder irrigation schemes in South Africa

Water SA ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 44 (3 July) ◽  
Author(s):  
M Fanadzo ◽  
B Ncube
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Capacity Building ◽  
Land Tenure ◽  
Government Policy ◽  
Food Production ◽  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Arable Land ◽  
Smallholder Farming ◽  
The Government ◽  
Smallholder Irrigation

South Africa is classified as a water-scarce country, and depends on agriculture for food production. The irrigation sector is the largest consumer of water in the country, accounting for about 62% of water utilisation, but also losing 30–40%. Given the threat of drought and climate change, efficient irrigation systems have become a necessity, especially in the smallholder farming sector where most losses occur. Smallholder irrigation schemes (SIS) were developed to improve rural livelihoods through sustainable food production for food security and poverty alleviation, but these development objectives remain largely unfulfilled. The objectives of this review were to assess challenges facing SIS and explore opportunities for revitalising the schemes. The focus was on government policy and strategies to support smallholder farmers. A review of government policy showed that although the needs and interests of smallholder farmers are high on the national agenda, there is insufficient financial support to the sector, suggesting that smallholder agriculture is not really seen as a potential driver of the economy. The core focus of the government on repairing irrigation infrastructure while neglecting the soft components relating to capacity building has partly been blamed for the failure of SIS in South Africa. Capacity building is one of the missing links in smallholder irrigation development and many failures have been attributed to lack of adequately trained farmers and extension staff, particularly in irrigation water management. Land tenure insecurity has been singled out as a major institutional challenge leading to poor performance of irrigation schemes. The diversity of schemes means that different kinds of interventions are needed to respond to varying farmers’ needs, resources and agricultural contexts. These findings point to the need to balance the soft and hard components of the irrigation schemes for sustainability. It is therefore evident that the government needs to review its priorities in revitalisation of SIS. Land tenure policies allowing increased access to arable land need to be developed urgently, together with the promotion of alternative cropping systems that are suitable forthe smallholder farming sector.

scholarly journals Changes in Crude Oil Prices and the Flow of Government Revenue

2019 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Chukwunweike Stella ◽  
Achu Tonia Chinedu ◽  
Awa Kalu Idika
Keyword(s):  
Oil Prices ◽  
Oil Price ◽  
Government Revenue ◽  
Distributed Lag ◽  
Autoregressive Distributed Lag ◽  
Oil Revenue ◽  
Crude Oil Prices ◽  
Regression Techniques ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Impact

This work is set out as an investigation into the impact of change in oil prices on government revenue broken into oil and nonoil component. Drawing data from the Central Bank Statistical Bulletin and covering the period 1981 to 2018. The Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) Model was used because of its advantages over other regression techniques. It was found that changes in oil price affected oil revenue within the studied period leaving no significant impact on nonoil revenue. The result obviously reflects the Nigerian economy and its mono-product characteristic. It is therefore recommended that a conscious policy effort should be made to diversify the economy in a manner that makes revenue to the government multifarious functions.

scholarly journals Economic Modelling of the Delay in Passing the Petroleum Industry Bill in Nigeria and Its Impact on Deep Offshore Investments and Government Take Statistics

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oghenerume Ogolo ◽  
Petrus Nzerem
Keyword(s):  
Petroleum Industry ◽  
Economic Models ◽  
Economic Modelling ◽  
Government Revenue ◽  
Production Sharing ◽  
The Government ◽  
Petroleum Sector ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Offshore Region

Abstract The petroleum industry bill (PIB) in Nigeria aims to reform the petroleum sector of the country and increase government revenue from petroleum investments. Despite the benefits the bill offers to the country, its passage has suffered several setbacks. This research therefore studied the impact of the delay in passing the bill on deep offshore investments. Economic models were built using the fiscal terms in PIB 2009 and 1993 production sharing contract (PSC) arrangement to evaluate the impact of the bill. The model with the 1993 PSC fiscal terms was adjusted to capture the delay in passing the bill. The bill was assumed to be passed on a yearly basis for 10 years (2010 to 2019). The impact of the delay in passing the bill based on the reserve portfolio of firms in the deep offshore region of the country was also evaluated. The delay in passing the PIB reduced the government take. It was seen that for the non-passage of the bill, the government lost about $1227.2 MM. When the bill was passed in 2019, the government had been losing about $11.843 MM on a yearly basis due to the delay in passing the bill.

The Role of Patenting in Academic—Industry Links in the UK

1995 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 293-302
Author(s):  
Kathryn Packer
Keyword(s):  
Government Policy ◽  
Policy Instruments ◽  
Research Staff ◽  
Speed Up ◽  
The Government ◽  
Future Policy ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Industry Relations

In this follow-up article to her paper in the December 1994 issue of Industry and Higher Education, Kathryn Packer summarizes and assesses the views of industrial liaison (IL) staff and university researchers on the activities in UK universities that are designed to promote academic-industry relations in general and increased revenue through patenting in particular. She also looks at the government policy instruments intended to facilitate and speed up these changes. The paper explores the perceptions IL staff have of the changes that have taken place in their own institutions with regard to patenting, what forms of contact they currently have with research staff and what the role of the Department of Trade and Industry sponsored technology audits has been in promoting these links. The author then discusses IL staff's recommendations for future policy activities and changes in the law relating to intellectual property rights.

scholarly journals Review of Nigeria’s Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB)

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (9) ◽  
pp. 1081-1084
Author(s):  
Azubuike Hope Amadi ◽  
Victor D. Ola ◽  
John O. Ayoola
Keyword(s):  
Crude Oil ◽  
Oil And Gas ◽  
Research Work ◽  
Petroleum Industry ◽  
Government Revenue ◽  
Investment Policies ◽  
Oil Companies ◽  
Nigerian Government ◽  
The Government ◽  
Year 2000

Since the discovery of Crude Oil in 1875, the Petroleum Industry has gradually improved in value due to the series of valuable products gotten from crude oil. The significant impact of crude oil as a source of energy has made exportation and importation of this mineral a lucrative business around the world, having turned to be the major source of revenue for most producing countries. Crude oil has contributed to about 80% of Nigerian Government revenue and foreign exchange since 1958, making it a key player in the economic plan of the country. Its importance in Nigeria has made the Legislature introduce lots of policies and laws governing the Oil and Gas business in the country. However, Nigerians with different views over the years have clamored for an improvement of these policies to enable the benefits of Her resources fairly get to the grassroots, producing communities and states while improving foreign investment policies in the country. These demands led to the introduction of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) in the year 2000. This research work attempts to review and offer recommendations for improvements to avoid future litigations, violence, conflicts, and industry fragility. This work will also elaborate on different steps taken by the Nigerian Government over the years to implement this bill, challenges faced by the Government and International Oil Companies (IOCs), Government and its citizens, and anomalies seen in the bill up till status quo.

What Does Rent Give to Federal Budget (on the Russia's Budget Dependence upon "Oil Dollars")

2004 ◽  
pp. 51-69 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Sharipova ◽  
I. Tcherkashin
Keyword(s):  
Oil And Gas ◽  
Strong Dependence ◽  
Oil Prices ◽  
Federal Budget ◽  
Oil And Gas Industry ◽  
Gas Industry ◽  
Resource Rent ◽  
Tax Legislation ◽  
Russian Economy ◽  
The Government

Federal tax revenues from the main sectors of the Russian economy after the 1998 crisis are examined in the article. Authors present the structure of revenues from these sectors by main taxes for 1999-2003 and prospects for 2004. Emphasis is given to an increasing dependence of budget on revenues from oil and gas industries. The share of proceeds from these sectors has reached 1/3 of total federal revenues. To explain this fact world oil prices dynamics and changes in tax legislation in Russia are considered. Empirical results show strong dependence of budget revenues on oil prices. The analysis of changes in tax legislation in oil and gas industry shows that the government has managed to redistribute resource rent in favor of the state.

Reasons for the Onset of the Uniat Clergy’s Movement Towards Orthodoxy in the Russian Empire in the Beginning of the 19th Century

2020 ◽  
Vol 58 ◽  
pp. 293-317
Author(s):  
Protopriest Alexander Romanchuk
Keyword(s):  
19Th Century ◽  
Government Policy ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
Russian Empire ◽  
Latin Church ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Russian Empire ◽  
In The Beginning ◽  
Church Service ◽  
The 19Th Century

The article studies the system of pre-conditions that caused the onset of the uniat clergy’s movement towards Orthodoxy in the Russian Empire in the beginning of the 19th century. The author comes to the conclusion that the tendency of the uniat clergy going back to Orthodoxy was the result of certain historic conditions, such as: 1) constant changes in the government policy during the reign of Emperor Pavel I and Emperor Alexander I; 2) increasing latinization of the uniat church service after 1797 and Latin proselytism that were the result of the distrust of the uniats on the part of Roman curia and representatives of Polish Catholic Church of Latin church service; 3) ecclesiastical contradictions made at the Brest Church Union conclusion; 4) division of the uniat clergy into discordant groups and the increase of their opposition to each other on the issue of latinization in the first decades of the 19th century. The combination of those conditions was a unique phenomenon that never repeated itself anywhere.

A Call for Public Participation in the Treaty-making Process in South Africa: What can South Africa Learn from the Kingdom of Thailand?

2020 ◽  
Vol 53 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Retselisitsoe Phooko
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Public Participation ◽  
International Treaty ◽  
Legal Implications ◽  
Future Situation ◽  
Rules Of Procedure ◽  
The Republic ◽  
The Government ◽  
Personal Jurisdiction

On 2 August 2002 South Africa signed the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Protocol on Tribunal and the Rules of Procedure Thereof, thus effectively recognising and accepting the jurisdiction of the SADC Tribunal. Among the cases received by the SADC Tribunal was a complaint involving allegations of human rights violations by the government of Zimbabwe. It ruled that the government of Zimbabwe had violated human rights. Consequently, Zimbabwe mounted a politico-legal challenge against the existence of the Tribunal. This resulted in the review of the role and functions of the Tribunal in 2011 which resulted in the Tribunal being barred from receiving new cases or proceeding with the cases that were already before it. Furthermore, on 18 August 2014, the SADC Summit adopted and signed the 2014 Protocol on the Tribunal in the SADC which disturbingly limits personal jurisdiction by denying individual access to the envisaged Tribunal, thus reducing it to an inter-state judicial forum. This article critically looks at the decision of 18 August 2014, specifically the legal implications of the Republic of South Africa’s signing of the 2014 Protocol outside the permissible procedure contained in article 37 of the SADC Protocol on the Tribunal. It proposes that South Africa should correct this democratic deficit by introducing public participation in treaty-making processes in order to prevent a future situation where the executive unilaterally withdraws from an international treaty that is meant to protect human rights at a regional level. To achieve this, this article makes a comparative study between South Africa and the Kingdom of Thailand to learn of any best practices from the latter.

Is Xenophobic Violence and Criminality Systemic in Post-Apartheid South Africa? A Critical Analysis of Growing Denialism to 2015 Incidents

Politeia ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mbekezeli Comfort Mkhize ◽  
Kongko Louis Makau
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Critical Analysis ◽  
Hate Crime ◽  
International Organisations ◽  
Foreign Nationals ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
South Africans ◽  
Structural Problems ◽  
The Government

This article argues that the 2015 xenophobic violence was allowed to spread due to persistent inaction by state officials. While the utterances of King Goodwill Zwelithini have in part fuelled the attacks, officials tend to perceive acts of xenophobia as ordinary crimes. This perception has resulted in ill-advised responses from the authorities, allowing this kind of hate crime against foreign nationals to engulf the whole country. In comparison with similar attacks in 2008, the violent spree in 2015 is characterised by a stronger surge in criminal activities. The militancy showcased fed a sense of insecurity amongst foreigners, creating a situation inconsistent with the country’s vaunted respect for human rights and the rule of law. Investors lost confidence in the country’s outlook, owing in part to determined denialism in government circles regarding the targeting of foreigners. While drawing from existing debates, the article’s principal objective is to critically examine the structural problems that enable xenophobia to proliferate and the (in)effectiveness of responses to the militancy involved in the 2015 attacks. Of particular interest are the suggested responses that could be effective in curbing future violence. The article concludes that xenophobia is systemic in post-apartheid South Africa. Strong cooperation between the government, national and international organisations could provide the basis for successful anti-xenophobia measures. The article further argues that the country is obliged to find a sustainable solution to the predicament for humanitarian reasons firstly, and in recognition of the support South Africans received from its African counterparts during the liberation struggle.

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