More from the Author

• Case | HBS Case Collection | 2013 (Revised from original 2011 version)

  South Africa (A): Stuck in the Middle?

  Richard H. K. Vietor and Diego Comin

  Fifteen years after ending apartheid, formal unemployment in South Africa was still at 24%. While the country had grown at 4 to 5% annually during the 2000s, the financial crisis set it back by 1 million more unemployed. Moreover, it seemed as if the nation were stuck between low wage and fully developed competitors. The government of Jacob Zuma has just adopted a "New Growth Path," hoping to create several million jobs over the next few years. Both the Finance Minister and the head of the Central Bank support the initiative, but worry how they can sustain fiscal discipline and control inflation, in light of these stimulative policies. Organized labor, meanwhile, has little sympathy for any sort of sacrifice.

  Keywords: Financial Crisis; Inflation and Deflation; Policy; Employment; Wages; Competition; South Africa;

  Citation:

  Vietor, Richard H. K., and Diego Comin. "South Africa (A): Stuck in the Middle?" Harvard Business School Case 711-084, May 2013. (Revised from original April 2011 version.)

  CiteView DetailsPurchase

  Related

• Supplement | HBS Case Collection | 2013 (Revised from original 2012 version)

  Malaysia: The Economic Transformation Program (B)

  Diego A. Comin and Ku Kok Peng

  Keywords: Economic Transformation Program; productivity growth; new economic model; Najiv; Idris Jala; Malaysia;

  Citation:

  Comin, Diego A., and Ku Kok Peng. "Malaysia: The Economic Transformation Program (B)." Harvard Business School Supplement 713-008, February 2013. (Revised from original September 2012 version.)

  CiteView DetailsPurchase

  Related

• Supplement | HBS Case Collection | 2012 (Revised from original 2011 version)

  South Africa (B): Getting Unstuck?

  Richard H. K. Vietor and Diego Comin

  15 years after ending apartheid, formal unemployment in South Africa was still at 24%. While the country had grown at 4 to 5% annually during the 2000s, the financial crisis set it back by 1 million more unemployed. Moreover, it seemed as if the nation were stuck between low wage and fully developed competitors. The government of Jacob Zuma has just adopted a "New Growth Path," hoping to create several million jobs over the next few years. Both the Finance Minister and the head of the Central Bank support the initiative, but worry how they can sustain fiscal discipline and control inflation, in light of these stimulative policies. Organized labor, meanwhile, has little sympathy for any sort of sacrifice.

  Keywords: Financial Crisis; Inflation and Deflation; Policy; Employment; Wages; Competition; South Africa;

  Citation:

  Vietor, Richard H. K., and Diego Comin. "South Africa (B): Getting Unstuck?" Harvard Business School Supplement 711-085, December 2012. (Revised from original April 2011 version.)

  CiteView DetailsPurchase

  Related