Market triumphalism and the South Afican state: a case study of local government in the Eastern Cape

• Main Author: Breakfast, Ntsikelelo Benjamin
• Format: Others
• Language: English
• Published: Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University 2013
• Subjects: Local government > South Africa > East London > Case studies; Local government > South Africa > Port Elizabeth > Case studies; Development economics > South Africa > East London; Development economics > South Africa > Port Elizabeth
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1014085

At a glance, this study is a critique of local development policies with specific reference to the Buffalo City and Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Municipalities in the Eastern Cape. The researcher enters the debate by posing a primary research question: Do the Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) and Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (BBBEE) ventures that constitute anti-poverty strategies succeed in addressing the issues of poverty, and achieving more equitable development at the municipal level in the Eastern Cape? This research proposes a problem statement: The local development policies of PPP and BBBEE that are being applied through Local Economic Development strategies are not in the interests of the majority of people living in the Eastern Cape. At a methodological level this research employs both quantitative and qualitative approaches to answer the central question and to verify the problem statement of this study. This triangulation approach is employed to utilize the strengths of both quantitative and qualitative methods. More specifically, the researcher uses a number of different research instruments to collect the data including four hundred questionnaires, four focus groups and elite interviews in both municipalities. The findings of this study indicate that local development policies in both municipalities do not improve the lives of the people. This line of thinking is indicated by both the empirical study conducted by the researcher and is supported by a number of scholarly materials. This study contributes to the body of knowledge in Political Economy and Development Studies including other disciplines in Social and Economic Sciences. The central argument of this thesis is that both BBBEE and PPPs are inspired by neo-liberalism (BBBEE is not neo-liberal per se though it may be heavily influenced by it) and neo-liberalism in practice is contradictory in nature as it involves the allocation of state resources to politically influential individuals, rather than promoting economic development for the majority. The evidence of this research further shows that the local business and political elites through the BBBEE, PPPs and outsourcing of services are using their strong networks (associated political, social and capital resources) in their efforts for personal accumulation. The researcher in this study examines the local development policies from a particular standpoint which is a political economy approach. The business and political elites according to political economic perspective use state resources to enrich themselves.