Exploring Economic Behaviour in South Africa’s Informal Economy
by VALODIA, I., DAVIES, R., THURLOW, J. & ALTMAN, M, 2008Research report prepared by the Employment, Growth and Development Initiative, Human Sciences Research Council for Conflict and Governance Facility (CAGE), October 2007
“This report contributes to a larger project of the Human Sciences Research Council, the School of Development Studies and IFPRI, which seeks to understand the competitive behaviour of informal firms in a growing economy. The main components of the project are a background conceptual paper; a social accounting matrix (SAM) that explores the relationship between the formal and informal economies in South Africa; an experimental computable general equilibrium (CGE) model that incorporates characteristics specific to the informal economy; and a pilot survey of the informal economy. The report reviews the methodology and findings of the pilot survey of 100 informal retailers in four different locations in the Durban area. The survey was intended to feed into a possible larger survey of the informal economy, and could also be used to refine the SAM and CGE model. “
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