Thesis (M.Com. (Economics)) --University of Limpopo, 2010 / Economic growth remains one of the key macroeconomic objectives of most governments. South Africa witnessed moderate economic growth rates between 1994 and 2006, except for 1998 when the country recorded a sharp decline in economic growth as a result of worldwide financial crisis. The key challenge facing the country is to sustain and improve on the growth performance. South Africa’s economic growth has largely been demand –driven as indicated by the dominance of consumption over investment. Growth theorists identify investment, savings, human capital, productivity and R & D as some of the principal drivers of economic growth on the supply side. Investment and savings within the economy remain largely below those of the world’s most successful East - Asian countries. Other indicators further reveal that there is still room for improvements on the supply-side of the economy. The growing current account deficits point to the fact that domestic demand is too high for the country’s productive capacity. Similarly, the declining enrolment in tertiary institutions and a shift in the structure of production towards high skill services industry call for a policy shift in line with the unfolding trend. Thus, this study proposes some policy options that could be considered to sustain South Africa’s economic growth performance. Key words: Economic Growth, Investments, Human Capital and Productivity

Research Doctorate - Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / It took 400 years to recognise and then analyse a class of social phenomena – the unintended results of historical development and individual action. This class includes language, law, the economic order, prices, money, morals, customs, skills, the division of labour, etc. They are complex formations, combining complex rules and particular historical circumstances; they manifest in people’s action and therefore the historical record. Analysts of such complex historical phenomena includes Coke, Hale, Mandeville, Hume, Smith, Burke, Sir William Jones, Wilhelm von Humboldt, Ferguson and Dugald Stewart. Menger, Mises and Hayek built on, systematised and extended what had been built up earlier. The capital structure is now added to this class; and the latter’s general features are set out using language, law, the catallaxy and the capital structure. The investment structure in early modern England is analysed and described as a case study.

Recent studies in water management policy point to insufficient recognition of water as a scarce commodity and the failure of pricing policies to account for the full economic costs of its production and supply. These costs include opportunity costs related to alternative uses of water; user costs associated with managing a scarce resource; and costs of externalities such as ground water depletion, pollution of waterways, and greenhouse gas emissions. Existing cost recovery based pricing policies may lead to inefficiencies such as excess consumption, under-investment in water infrastructure, and unnecessary subsidisation. Water scarcity can be managed in several ways. We can increase supply by investment in additional harvesting capabilities or new technologies such as desalination; we can constrain consumption so that existing supplies last longer; or we can use water in more efficient ways. As a short term measure, most countries adopt water restrictions when supplies are at critical levels. In the future, as urban population growth continues, harvesting of storm water and reuse of grey water may become part of a sustainable water management strategy. Water trading can be used to move water to where the marginal benefits are highest. Considerable water savings are possible through the use of more efficient industrial and domestic appliances. There is evidence in some countries that higher water tariffs have reduced consumption and promoted awareness of conservation. If we accept that water is an economic good, then we need to understand the costs related to its production, the patterns of its use, and the benefits received by different users. This thesis is an examination of theoretical and applied aspects of urban water pricing based on analysis of cost, demand, and welfare. We present theoretical models of cost that include economies of scale as a parameter, and a model of water demand by households with heterogeneous preferences. We determine marginal cost at the efficient level of output based on a partial equilibrium of supply and demand. We also show that when water is produced with increasing returns to scale, the efficient price will be insufficient to recover all costs, and therefore a form of second best pricing is required. We contrast conventional notions about water suppliers being cost minimisers with an alternative frontier model of cost efficiency. Two case studies examine the provision of water services under different forms of ownership. The first case study examines the provision of water to domestic households in the state of Victoria, Australia. The second case study examines the supply of water to the residents of Manila, one of the world’s largest cities that privatised its water service in 1997 under a form of concession agreement. A third case study derives an efficient cost frontier for a sample of water utilities from Asia and Australia and proposes a form of best practice pricing. The thesis concludes with a summary of the main results and policy conclusions, and ideas for future research. / http://proxy.library.adelaide.edu.au/login?url= http://library.adelaide.edu.au/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=1289196 / Thesis (PhD) -- School of Economics, 2007

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Dept. of Economics. University of Missouri--Kansas City, 2007. / "A dissertation in economics and social science consortium." Advisor: Frederic S. Lee. Typescript. Vita. Title from "catalog record" of the print edition Description based on contents viewed Dec. 19, 2007. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 216-240). Online version of the print edition.

<p>Development should not be viewed as just a project but must be understood as an overarching strategy with a thorough implementation plan and specific targets as well as review mechanisms. All different spheres of government, organs of civil society and business have a tremendous role to play in pursuit of sustainable economic growth and development. In Khayelitsha there are emerging trends of bulk infrastructure spending and community led partnership that seek to unlock the economic potential however this progress has thus far been limited to retail development with no productive industrial development.</p>

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the series of events and legislation that has led to the current system of welfare and wealth redistribution in the United State. I begin with a background of the origins of the welfare state in England and the United States, and discuss the social movements which gave rise to the modern welfare state. I discuss how wars, economic theories, and recessions have influenced policy, and how such policy has affected poverty and unemployment rates since the Great Depression. I have found that social welfare spending has steadily increased since the Great Depression, and that the current trend of deficit spending and expansion of the social safety-net is a product of the legislation passed during the Great Depression and the ‘Great Society’ of the 1960s. Although there have been many attempts to secure a minimum standard of living through social welfare spending, the problems of poverty and unemployment persist.

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Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Alberta, 2010. / Title from pdf file main screen (viewed on January 12, 2010). "A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, Department of Political Science, University of Alberta." "Spring 2010." Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Alberta, 2010. / Title from pdf file main screen (viewed on January 12, 2010). "A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, Department of Political Science, University of Alberta." "Spring 2010." Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 2001. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 135-142).