Promotion of sustained private sector-led economic growth with broad participation in the benefits by previously disadvantaged groups in South Africa

This report presents results of a MAPS exercise tailored to the unique conditions of South Africa following the demise of apartheid and the historic democratic election of 1994. The report summarizes earlier work completed under MAPS, comprising an annotated bibliography, a benchmarking exercise, and a sectoral analysis. The benchmarking exercise reveals significant obstacles to black economic empowerment for previously disadvantaged groups in regard to literacy, job skills, and business and asset ownership. The sectoral study identifies those sectors holding the greatest promise for economic empowerment of disadvantaged groups. These include certain manufacturing subsectors, building and construction, finance/business services, and tourism-related industries. Prospects in these sectors and constraints to their growth are identified. Based on these previous works, general constraints to both economic growth and economic empowerment are presented. Initiatives to relieve constraints include: (1) improving the policy environment; (2) increasing domestic and foreign investment; (3) promoting small and medium enterprises; (4) enhancing competitiveness and exports; (5) increasing employment; and (6) developing infrastructure. Presented in detail are initiatives focusing on policy support, unbundling and privatization, and direct support for emerging, small, and disadvantaged businesses.