Arguing that more needs to be done on the economic front if South Africa is to generate sustainable economic growth and at the same time provide employment, eradicate poverty, and reduce inequality, this account seeks to provide new lines of thinking in order to achieve these goals. In a clear and user-friendly way, it looks at the challenges of development, analyzes the current political economy of South Africa, and considers the constraints of the global environment. Written by leading thinkers within the African National Congress (ANC), this book belongs to a series that offers short yet informative introductions to ANC history, politics, and policy.

This title begins from the standpoint that new thinking is needed if South Africa is to generate sustainable economic growth, provide employment and decent work and promote rural development. As comparisons with other developing economies, particularly South Korea and Brazil, show, it is possible for the so-called developmental state to direct and plan economic activity and achieve developmental objectives. At the same time the title warns about the perverse impacts of black economic empowerment, particularly the growth of a rentier class of well-connected entrepreneurs.