JABULANI SIKHAKHANE: Poorest South Africans are paying for protectionism
24 July 2024 - 05:00
The new unity government has set as one of its three priorities the reduction of the high cost of living, a goal it has linked to reducing poverty. This means it sees a causal link between poverty and the high cost of living — and correctly so.
But achieving these goals will be easier said than done because of other government objectives, including re-industrialisation, which entails protecting certain locally manufactured goods from international competition. This includes goods on which the poor spend a disproportionately large share of their meagre resources, including food and clothing. ..
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