South African Economic Development And Trade Essay

Africa’s trade networks experienced many continuities, in their culture, and changes, in their trade economics, from 1000 C.E. to 1750 C.E.

Historically, the South African economy has been largely unstable mostly due to political issues. Although, considering its counterparts, South Africa shows the most promise for economic development and growth (Jordaan, 2010 pg.5). In 1990 South Africa entered the global market after overcoming major political issues such as apartheid. Many economists agree that the changes the South African government has made to be able to compete globally, are for the better (Wessel, 2007). In the article “CAPITAL: Globalization Brings South

As the anti-apartheid struggle ramped up in South Africa in the 1980s, the Kagiso Trust was formed as a NGO to support the struggle against apartheid and to distribute funds from the European Union and other donors. This was to provide the uplifting and empowerment of disadvantaged communities in South Africa through various development initiatives. At this stage, the core focus of the Kagiso Trust was on “building partnerships and collaborations to strengthen the implementation capacity of people and organisations in development”[1]. Following South Africa’s transition into democracy in 1994, the Kagiso Trust refocused its goals and efforts on education [1], which is considered a critical component in the eradication of inequality.

Trade is one of the key necessities to building a prosperous empire. This is shown through the empires located in Africa, the Middle East, and in China. Trade causes either negative or positive effects based on what is being traded or who it affects. There are many circumstances that can affect the trade outcome, such as location. Trade is very important to most kingdoms because it causes a good economy and government.

American and Native Americans felt that they were being denied economic independence and democratic self-government during the 19th century, because at the peak of western expansion and industrialization the government was manipulated by big corporations. The government needed money to fulfill this ‘destiny’ so big companies such as the railroads and the mining companies would pay out the government to establish their businesses. Many small local businesses were wiped out by these large and well-funded business. Many groups of people were affected by industrialization. Native Americans were forced to move out of their lands and assimilate to the U.S. government’s demands. In the South African Americans were strategically forced in to a certain type of slavery called sharecropping. As industrialization arouse, so did flocks of farmers and immigrants moved into the big cities to work in factories. The working class worked long hours in unsafe conditions at corporate facilities, they were treated as a number that could be replace the next day.

Throughout the 18th and 19th century, Europe underwent an Industrial Revolution. People began relying heavily on machines. Various countries required resources for their industrial lifestyle, and thus they enforced a policy of imperialism. Imperialism is when a country politically, economically, and socially stronger takes control over a weaker country and utilizes the resources from that country. However, many countries abused their power during imperialism. European nations are guilty of abuse of power in the Congo, India, and South Africa.

The county of South Africa is an economically flourishing country and probably the most advanced country on the continent of Africa. However the entire continent of Africa is probably the most undeveloped part of the world. Why is South Africa so different from the rest of its continent? Karen Politis Virk explains that it is because of South Africa’s developed economy and diverse population (Virk 40). South Africa has three main ethnic groups: African, Afrikaners, and the mixed race. The Afrikaners and mixed races have many roots to Europe and Asia giving the nation even more diversity and a culture melting pot. This set the nation apart from the rest of the African nation in which the majority of the residents are of native African

     “And so it has come to pass, that South Africa today undergoes her rebirth, cleansed of a horrible past, matured from a tentative beginning, and reaching out to the future with confidence,”(Mandela 1994) Nelson Mandela predicts. They

Many of the contemporary issues in South Africa can easily be associated with the apartheid laws which devastated the country. The people of South Africa struggle day by day to reverse “the most cruel, yet well-crafted,” horrific tactic “of social engineering.” The concept behind apartheid emerged in 1948 when the nationalist party took over government, and the all-white government enforced “racial segregation under a system of legislation” . The central issues stem from 50 years of apartheid include poverty, income inequality, land ownership rates and many other long term affects that still plague the brunt of the South African population while the small white minority still enjoy much of the wealth, most of the land and opportunities

     International trade is defined as trade between two or more partners from different countries in the exchange of goods and services. In order to understand International trade, we need to first know and understand what trade is, which is the buying and selling of products between different countries. International Trade simply is globalization of the world and enables countries to obtain products and services from other countries effortlessly and expediently.

Some of the world’s poorest countries, with some of the highest child labor and illiteracy rates lie in Sub Saharan Africa. People generally associate the region only with poor economic conditions and all of the social disorder that goes along with 3rd World Status. While some of this reputation is deserved, many people are also failing to see the vast potential for this part of the world. There are several factors that African governments should look into if they want to effectively and efficiently revamp this areas quality of life. One way to do so is by improving the more crucial aspects to healthy functioning region, for example, allowing children to possess their natural rights to a decent education. This could influence an increase

Today’s world is shrinking. Not literally of course, but the advances in technology make it easy to span thousands of miles of land and sea, so people can immediately communicate with each other. The internet has connected the world instantly, and planes make traveling from one side of the world to the other a piece of cake compared to the long, dangerous sea voyages of the past. People move and migrate constantly, all the while exchanging ideas and goods. Trade has always played an important role in human history. Whether the swapping of an apple for an orange, or $12 million dollars for a new dam, the fluid movement of goods and services from one to another is how humans have been able to receive things they might not have had

South Africa endured one of the worst colonialisation any country could have went through, whereby the Apartheid regime objectively disregarded the economic participation of the black over to those of the white population. However, the new democratic government would thereby be challenged with effectively having to deal with the challenges in which the past government had left behind. Therefore, in effectively trying to deal with the issues, alternative approaches have to be implemented in order to deliver on the challenges of the public. On the contrary, this essay will critically compare and discuss the liberal and free market, as well as the state interventionist approach as alternative solutions in dealing with current issues of social security, the health and school systems. Which would be able to transform current developmental challenges facing South Africa. In summary, the essay will thereby state which approach can transform South Africa in effectively dealing with developmental challenges currently facing South Africa.

Mercantilism was a sixteenth-century economic philosophy that maintained that a country's wealth was measured by its holdings of gold and silver (Mahoney, Trigg, Griffin, & Pustay, 1998). This recquired the countries to maximise the difference between its exports and imports by promoting exports and discouraging imports. The logic was transparent to sixteenth-century policy makers-if foreigners buy more goods from you than you buy from them, then the foreigners have to pay you the difference in gold and silver, enabling you to amass more treasure. With the treasure acquired the realm could build greater armies and navies and hence expand the nation’s global influence.

From the 17th century until the early 1900’s, European countries were fighting to get tracks of land across Africa. Although South Africa was unified by Great Britain in 1910, the African National Congress was formed two years later. It was only on Dec 11, 1931 after World War II when Britain gave South Africa its’ independence as a country. For the first sixty years after South Africa was claimed independent, white minority rulers dominated the country. South Africa is now an independent Nation but is still a member of the British Commonwealth.