In South Africa, social stability and human well-being face growing risks due to ongoing issues in providing equitable access to essential resources, including energy, food, and water. Although the interconnection of these resources has been well documented, their impact on income inequality distribution has not been thoroughly investigated in the South African context. This research aims to investigate the impact of energy consumption, agricultural productivity, and water use on income inequality, as measured by the Gini coefficient, an indicator of social and economic resilience. Using the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model for the years 1990–2022, the study examines dynamics in both the short and long run. The empirical evidence suggests that fossil fuel use significantly increases inequality in both the short and long terms. In contrast, water extraction intensity diminishes inequality over the long term but exacerbates it in the short term. Additionally, cereal production has a significant, long-term, inequality-increasing impact, indicating that agricultural benefits are not evenly distributed among households. The findings additionally validate a rapid adjustment rate towards long-term equilibrium, highlighting the enduring structural nature of inequality in resource distribution. These results underscore the urgent need for policies that promote a fair energy transition, equitable water management, and inclusive agricultural development. The research contributes to the broader conversation surrounding the food–water–energy nexus. It offers evidence-driven insights for developing resource governance strategies that can enhance resilience and reduce inequality in South Africa.

South Africa’s shift to renewable energy has been characterised by significant structural changes, primarily through the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP), which achieved considerable capacity by 2016. Although this green transition aligns with environmental and economic goals, gender inequities persist in labour market outcomes, particularly in technical and leadership positions. This study examines the short- and long-term impacts of renewable energy investments and important socioeconomic elements on female labour force participation (FLFP) in South Africa. Applying a bounds testing approach based on a semi-annual autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model, this analysis utilises data from 2003 to 2022. It includes factors such as renewable energy investments, the share of green jobs, GDP per capita, and access to modern energy services. The results indicate a statistically significant long-term equilibrium relationship. Increased renewable energy investments align with increases in FLFP, and the growth of green jobs further boosts women’s workforce participation. GDP per capita additionally has a positive impact, highlighting the macroeconomic advantages of inclusive growth. On the contrary, access to existing energy services shows a statistically insignificant negative relationship with FLFP, suggesting that merely expanding infrastructure may not effectively tackle gendered labour disparities. This study adds to the field of energy economics by providing a gender-segregated empirical evaluation and by suggesting policy actions to foster a more inclusive and fair energy transition in South Africa.

Energy intensity (EI) is a crucial metric for assessing sustainable economic performance, but its understanding and effectiveness remain subject to discussion. In the context of South Africa's Water–Energy–Food (WEF) nexus, this study empirically investigates the relationship between resource efficiency and energy intensity (EI), highlighting the transitional dynamics of the country's Just Energy Transition. The study examines the short- and long-term impacts of water productivity (LWP), water withdrawal intensity (LWWI), electricity production from renewable sources (EPRS), and cereal yield (CY) on energy intensity using the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) approach and annual time-series data covering 1990–2023. The results show that these variables have a statistically significant long-term cointegrating relationship. A higher energy intensity is linked to both short- and long-term increases in renewable electricity generation, which reflects transitional inefficiencies in early-stage renewable integration. On the other hand, reductions in water withdrawal intensity dramatically reduce energy intensity, highlighting the significance of water-use efficiency in reducing pressures on energy demand. The statistically insignificant effects of agricultural yield and water productivity point to structural heterogeneity and compensatory mechanisms in South Africa's resource systems. The results indicate that the Just Transition needs to consider the shifting trade-offs between efficiency and decarbonization, necessitating social inclusion, institutional collaboration, and technological advancements. Policy implications include boosting inter-sectoral governance mechanisms, encouraging water-efficient technologies, and improving grid flexibility. Quantifying resource interdependencies that influence sustainable energy transitions in emerging economies adds to the empirical discussion of the WEF nexus.

The extensive use and production of chemical fertilizers poses a threat to the environment. Smallholder farmers in South Africa are characterized by low productivity. The adoption of sustainable agricultural practices such as the use of organic fertilizer is crucial. Although there have been studies on the adoption of organic fertilizer, the socio-economic factors determining the farmer’s willingness to pay remain unclear. Therefore, this study was aimed at investigating the factors that affect willingness to pay for organic fertilizers by smallholder vegetable farmers. The study was arranged as a cross-sectional design where the data was collected using structured questionnaires from 131 randomly selected registered smallholder vegetable farmers. The collected data was analyzed using both descriptive statistics and a binary logistic regression model. The findings revealed that 61.83% of farmers were female and 38.17% male. In addition, the findings also indicate that 61.83% of the farmers were adults above the age of 35. Furthermore, the findings revealed that 70.23% of the farmers were willing to pay for organic fertilizers, suggesting a demand for organic fertilizers. The binary logistic results show that level of education (0.071), amount spent on fertilizer (0.043), and if challenges were encountered when using organic fertilizers (0.044), were positively influencing WTP, increasing WTP for organic fertilizers. These findings conclude that education is a major barrier in WTP for organic fertilizers. Therefore, it is recommended that farmers are educated on the benefits of organic fertilizers and procedures of application, including curing or organic manure for safe application in the field. Due to the high percentage of farmers willing to pay for organic fertilizers, it is recommended that organic fertilizers be commercialized for a stable supply to meet demand.

Orientation: Graduate unemployment remains a significant socio-economic issue in South Africa, despite the growth of higher education. University-led business incubators (ULBIs) have emerged as tools to foster entrepreneurship and reduce unemployment among graduates. Research purpose: This study examines the effectiveness of ULBIs in tackling graduate unemployment by pinpointing structural, strategic and institutional obstacles that affect their functionality within South Africa’s higher education fraternity. Motivation for the study: With youth unemployment remaining high at 46.1% in early 2025, it is crucial to assess the effectiveness of university incubation frameworks in converting academic knowledge into feasible entrepreneurial results that support national development objectives. Research design, approach and method: A qualitative secondary data methodology was utilised through a systematic thematic analysis of academic literature, institutional reports, and incubator documentation for the period 2019 to 2025. Four example cases, University of Cape Town (UCT) Solution Space, Stellenbosch LaunchLab, University of Pretoria (UP) TuksNovation, and UMP CFERI were employed for triangulation within an institutional theory framework. Main findings: The examination highlights five persistent limitations: inconsistent institutional missions, financial constraints, weak connections with industries, undeveloped entrepreneurial attitudes and inadequate scalability after incubation. These difficulties primarily arise from inflexible structures and cultural norms within universities. Practical/managerial implications: Universities must incorporate incubation into their plans, establish in-house seed funds, strengthen ties with industry, and implement effective monitoring and evaluation. Contribution/value-add: The study highlights the impact of institutional factors on incubator performance and provides evidence-based suggestions to enhance graduate entrepreneurship.

The repurchase rate (repo rate) serves as the primary tool of monetary policy utilised by the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) within its inflation-targeting strategy. The study examines the effect of macroprudential indicators on the repurchase rate (repo rate) established by the South African Reserve Bank (SARB). Examining the period following the Global Financial Crisis, this study explores how conditions in the financial sector influence monetary policy changes aimed at maintaining macro-financial stability. Employing the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) bounds testing methodology, along with an Error Correction Model (ECM), the study utilises quarterly data spanning the period from 2008Q1 to 2023Q4. The model takes into account macroeconomic fundamentals, including inflation, GDP growth, external balances, and global interest rates. The findings indicate that increases in the Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) and household debt-to-income (DTI) ratio are associated with higher repo rates. In contrast, credit growth metrics have a countercyclical effect. The presence of a stable long-term relationship validates the importance of macroprudential factors in the development of monetary policy. Policy recommendations involve enhancing collaboration between the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) and the Financial Stability Committee (FSC) of the SARB, augmenting macroprudential oversight, and adjusting inflation targeting to address systemic risk factors, thereby fostering both price stability and financial robustness.

In South Africa, the culture and creative industry still faces structural constraints and rapid technological change. While digital infrastructure has opened new paths for creative production, distribution, and commercialisation, the extent to which digital connectivity and innovation translate into tangible, measurable performance in the creative economy remains a question. In this paper, the study investigates the short- and long-run relationships among technological innovation, telecommunications infrastructure, digital services intensity, and the performance of South Africa’s creative economy over the period 1999–2023 using an Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) model. The study uses patent applications as an indicator of formal innovation, as well as of fixed telecommunications infrastructure, digital services exports, and overall economic activity. The negative and marginally significant long-run association of digital services exports is also observed, while overall GDP is insignificant. The error-correction mechanism is negative and statistically significant, although its small magnitude suggests a slow recovery toward the long-run equilibrium. The study’s results show that the development of the creative economy is not only about increasing overall digital connectivity but also about innovation capacity and technological infrastructure within the creative innovation ecosystem. The study further observes that technological access alone is insufficient to achieve sector-level benefits and that it must be accompanied by stronger innovation support, commercialisation capabilities, and institutional support for creative companies. From a policy perspective, the findings call for greater attention to intellectual property development, innovation capabilities, digital production capacity, and infrastructure to help creative companies translate their technology into business. The study provides time-series evidence on the link between technological innovation, digital infrastructure, and creative economy performance in an African emerging-market context, and it offers policy-relevant insights for developing innovation-led creative sector development in South Africa amid uneven digital and economic development.

The Southern African Customs Union (SACU), as a bloc, is compelled to commit to trade in environmentally friendly goods. This study investigated the short-run and long-run relationships between trade openness and environmental quality in the SACU. The Cross-Sectional Autoregressive Distributed Lag (CS-ARDL) approach was applied to the data from 1985 to 2023. The results show that the estimated coefficients of trade openness positively and significantly contribute to carbon emissions in the short run and the long run. The results demonstrate that the gains-from-trade hypothesis does not hold in the SACU. Also, the results indicate that foreign direct investment inflow does not significantly contribute to CO2 emissions; therefore, the pollution haven hypothesis does not hold. The Dumitrescu–Hurlin Granger non-causality test was employed, and the results show that there is bidirectional causality between CO2 emissions and trade openness, CO2 emissions and economic growth, and CO2 emissions and population growth and no directional causality between foreign direct investment and CO2 emissions. This study recommends that SACU countries should encourage the trade of eco-friendly goods, which is likely to lessen environmental consequences.

The creative economy includes the processes involved in producing, sharing, and using goods and services that depend on creativity, cultural understanding, entrepreneurship, and intellectual property as essential factors for economic value. This study examines the impact of digital infrastructure, artificial intelligence (AI), and innovation capabilities on the performance of South Africa’s creative economy from 1999 to 2023. It uses the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model and incorporates patent activity, ICT-related trade, and creative sector variables to analyse the short-term and long-term relationships. The findings suggest that digital trade and sector maturity significantly increase intellectual property revenues, while patent activities show minimal effect, and funding factors face measurement challenges. Persistent digital divides, reflected in uneven ICT adoption, limit equitable participation and business prospects. These results highlight the challenges and systemic obstacles faced by creative entrepreneurs. Policy suggestions emphasise targeted support for commercialising intellectual property, wider access to affordable digital infrastructure, and creating AI-focused creative hubs to strengthen South Africa’s role in the global creative economy.

Having the proper infrastructure is crucial because it fosters prosperous enterprise and a skilled labor force capable of solving environmental issues. There are worries about the potential negative effects of human capital centered on innovation, despite studies showing benefits. This study examines how contextual factors such as business environment, infrastructure, and human capital, influence South Africa’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. Multiple Regression Technique was used for analysis. Findings showed that each of the three factors has a remarkable impact, with business environment showing the highest positive relationship to the Ecosystem Index. The results highlight the significance of focusing on sustainable activities when developing human capital. To promote a more sustainable entrepreneurship environment, the study suggests that policymakers should implement incentives, allocate finances for infrastructure, and establish educational and knowledge-sharing initiatives to encourage the sustainability of the entrepreneurial ecosystem. Future research directions will focus on investigating how additional contextual factors affect ecosystems in various regions and industries. The study also suggests the evaluation of gender equality in access to financial and business assistance.

Business financing involves supplying funds or capital to initiate, expand, or maintain a business. This study investigates entrepreneurial funding in South Africa, emphasizing microloans, venture capital, and gender-sensitive grants as tools to facilitate inclusive business growth. Using a qualitative desktop research methodology, this study relies on policy documents, institutional reports, and peer-reviewed studies to assess how these funding strategies tackle access barriers for marginalized populations, specifically women, youth, and rural entrepreneurs. Guided by Access to Finance Theory, Gender Finance Theory, and Innovation Ecosystems Theory, this study indicates that microloans offer immediate funding for informal businesses but show minimal long-term effects without additional assistance. Venture capital promotes rapid innovation, yet it is predominantly based in urban regions and unattainable for underrepresented populations. Grants that address gender issues foster equity but are obstructed by institutional fragmentation and insufficient scale. The results highlight the necessity for unified financing frameworks that merge financial and non-financial assistance, facilitating scalable and inclusive business ventures. Policy suggestions involve aligning public financing tools with the National Integrated Small Enterprise Development Masterplan, integrating gender-sensitive budgeting frameworks, and utilizing digital financial platforms to enhance access. Future studies should utilize mixed-methods or longitudinal approaches to assess the ongoing developmental effects of coordinated financing models within the South African setting.

South Africa remains one of Africa’s highest greenhouse gas emitters due to its reliance on coal and a carbon-intensive economy. This study employs an Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) model to examine the impact of environmental taxes, coal consumption, and low-carbon transition strategies on GHG emissions. Results show that coal use significantly drives long-term emissions, while the positive correlation between environmental tax revenue and emissions suggests inefficiencies in fiscal-environmental alignment. The significant error correction term indicates gradual movement toward equilibrium despite short-term disruptions. The findings underscore the need for an integrated climate strategy that includes regulatory reform, investment in renewables, and the redesign of green fiscal tools. Inclusive governance—engaging state, private, academic, and civil sectors—is vital for a just and effective energy transition.

Energy efficiency potentially reduces global carbon emissions, whereas the need of emerging countries to maintain economic growth and development entails a sharp increase in energy consumption. However, to meet this, current energy systems need to be transformed. Several studies find different conclusions on the short-run and long-run relationship and the direction of causality, and none of the studies have considered energy efficiency in their model. This study investigates the direction of causality between energy efficiency, energy consumption, and economic growth in South Africa. To determine if a long-run relationship between the variables exists, the Johanson cointegration test is used, and the results indicate that there is a long-run relationship between economic growth, energy depletion, energy efficiency, non-renewable energy consumption, renewable energy consumption, and energy security, with trace statistics suggesting that the null hypothesis of no cointegration should be rejected at a 5% level of significance. The Toda and Yamamoto procedure of the Granger causality approach was then applied. This study finds a unidirectional causality between energy efficiency, non-renewable energy consumption, and economic growth and no causality between renewable energy consumption, energy depletion, energy security, and economic growth. The growth hypothesis is supported, while the neutrality hypothesis is only confirmed regarding renewable energy consumption and economic growth. The results further suggest that a unidirectional Granger causality exists between non-renewable consumption and energy efficiency, and economic growth in South Africa. In South Africa, energy efficiency is a significant tool to enhance sustainable growth and attain climate objectives. Also, energy efficiency helps to lower the costs of mitigating carbon emissions and further advance both social and economic development.

The urgent need to shift to sustainable energy systems is critical for South Africa, where deep-rooted fossil fuel reliance coincides with significant socio-economic and environmental issues. Although the potential of renewable electricity for promoting decarbonization and inclusive development is acknowledged, the macroeconomic and institutional factors influencing its share in a just energy transition are still inadequately examined. This study examines the changing interactions among economic growth, carbon emissions, and energy access in shaping South Africa’s share of renewable electricity. Utilizing the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) bounds testing method, the analysis reflects both short-term dynamics and long-term equilibrium relations among the chosen variables. The findings indicate a statistically significant positive relationship between carbon dioxide emissions and the proportion of renewable electricity, implying that environmental decline could stimulate investments in renewables through regulatory or financial motivators. On the contrary, both GDP per capita and access to electricity show negative relationships with the share of renewable electricity, emphasizing the ongoing reliance on fossil-fuel-driven growth and centralized energy access approaches. These results reveal systemic compromises among economic growth, increased energy accessibility, and environmental sustainability. Policy suggestions highlight the incorporation of decentralized renewables into electrification initiatives, alignment of industrial strategies with green growth objectives, and enhanced institutional collaboration to promote South Africa's equitable transition agenda. Future studies ought to broaden to comparative panel analyses throughout the Southern African area and include distributive justice metrics to guide fair energy policy development.

The low prevalence of contraception in sub-Saharan Africa is due to barriers to healthcare and cultural constraints. Women face stigma and limited access to modern contraceptives. Community education is needed to normalize contraceptive use, along with the expansion of healthcare facilities, targeted research, and the involvement of men in family planning.

Inequalities, specifically in Post-Apartheid South Africa, have been extensively analyzed, yet little attention has been paid to the effect of health policy on inequalities. The chapters goal is to demonstrate how SDG 3 (Health for All) can work with SDG10 (Reduce Inequalities) to fight longstanding societal inequalities. One of the first steps is the creation of the National Health Insurance (NHI), whose goal is to cover the entire population with adequate health care at an affordable price. Health and health outcomes are, however, not only affected by provision or access to healthcare and health services. They result from multidimensional and complex factors linked to the social determinants of health. So while the NHI may reduce inequality and inequity in health care, further attention will need to be placed on socio-economic inequality given the social and economic disparities among the population groups in the country.

Using time series data covering the years 1980 to 2020, this study examines the effects of government spending, population growth, and economic expansion on unemployment in the context of South Africa. The study’s variables include government spending, population growth, and economic growth as independent factors, and unemployment as the dependent variable. To ascertain the study’s outcomes, basic descriptive statistics, the Vector Error Correction Model (VECM), the Johansen Cointegration Procedures, the Augmented Dicky-Fuller Test (ADF), and diagnostic tests were used. Since all the variables are stationary at the first difference, the ADF results show that there isn’t a unit root issue. According to the Johansen cointegration estimation, there is a long-term relationship amongst the variables. Hence the choice of VECM to estimate the outcomes. Our results suggests that a rise in government spending will result in a rise in South Africa’s unemployment rate. The findings also suggest that there is a negative correlation between unemployment and population growth. This implies that as the overall population grows, unemployment will decline. Additionally, the findings suggest that unemployment and economic growth in South Africa are positively correlated. This contradicts a number of economic theories, including Keynesian and Okuns Law, which hold that unemployment and economic growth are inversely correlated.

The Human Development Index is a useful measure of a country’s overall prosperity and standard of living (HDI). The Human Development Index (HDI) provides data on the social and economic progress of a nation by accounting for variables such as life expectancy, education attainment, and per capita income. This research delves into the intricate correlation of a nation’s historical background, policy framework, and advancements on the Human Development Index. The remarkable journey of South Africa, from apartheid to inclusive growth, is an important example. The study uses an average yearly growth rate to examine how changes in political ideologies, ongoing development initiatives, and historical contexts of inequality have shaped South Africa’s HDI trajectory. By examining crucial turning points and policy influences, the study aims to reveal the complex relationship of factors affecting human development results. Despite improvement, challenges like unemployment and poverty continue. The study stresses the relevance of understanding historical context and policy changes in shaping HDI outcomes. Ultimately, the study emphasises the need of maintaining a long-term commitment to effective and inclusive human development policies. Understanding the complex relationship of factors influencing South Africa’s HDI will help policymakers make better informed decisions that will lead to a more prosperous and fair society for all South Africans.

The issue of income disparity has long plagued South Africa because of the political environment that existed before the country’s 1994 democratic transition. Based on the widely used Gini index, which gauges global inequality, the nation routinely has some of the highest rates of income disparity in the world. Income inequality in South Africa keeps rising even after a number of frameworks and policies have been put in place, which has a big influence on society. Thus, it is essential to comprehend the causes of income disparity and put suitable policies in place to remedy it. The purpose of this study is to look into the relationship between South Africa’s income disparity and its determinants. Using the Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) approach, this study empirically examines the effects of government spending on social grants, gross savings, population growth, and economic growth on income inequality from 1975 to 2017. Data on the Gini index are sourced from the Standardized World Income Inequality Database (SWIID). Findings reveal a statistically significant negative correlation between government spending on social grants and income inequality. Moreover, income inequality demonstrates a negative relationship with both gross savings and economic growth. However, population growth exhibits a positive correlation with income inequality. This study highlights the significance of implementing a comprehensive strategy to address income inequality in South Africa. This strategy should involve augmenting government expenditure on social grants, cultivating a savings culture within households, and enacting policies that incentivize job creation, particularly in areas with rapid population growth. In addition to making a substantial contribution to the body of evidence already available on income disparity, this study offers insightful information to policymakers working to improve the socioeconomic climate in South Africa.