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Stellenbosch Working Papers

Working Papers

Navigating COVID in the postlockdown period: Shifting risk perceptions and compliance with preventative measures

South Africa’s lockdown in March and April has saved lives by containing the spread of COVID-19 but it has done so at a tremendous social and economic cost. To avoid a second surge and another lockdown, it is vital to prioritise adherence to non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) as a first line of defence against containing COVID-19. NPIs can save lives without having to risk livelihoods. But to have an impact, it requires sufficiently high levels of public adherence.

August 12, 2020 By: Carmen Sue Christian, Ronelle Burger, René English, Brendan Maughan-Brown, Laura Rossouw PDF

A Sector Hanging in the Balance: ECD and Lockdown in South Africa

New evidence suggests that over four months after the closure of early childhood development (ECD) programmes on 18 March 2020, the ECD sector is likely to be operating at less than a quarter of its pre-lockdown levels. Of the 38% of respondents from the new NIDS-CRAM survey reporting that children aged 0-6 in their households had attended ECD programmes before the lockdown in March, only 12% indicated that children had returned to these programmes by mid-July, well after programmes were allowed to reopen

August 12, 2020 By: Gabrielle Wills, Janeli Kotze, Jesal Kika-Mistry PDF

Recently in the Press: Four Contributions by RESEP Researchers

In an effort to provide expert opinions, as well as assist in guiding public discussions around socio-economic policy, such as education, and issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the press contributions of RESEP researchers have increased markedly over the past several months.

July 29, 2020 By: RESEP Team PDF

Om die Riebeek-berge te versit

In April this year, 24-year-old Lunga Swelindawo received his Master’s degree in Economics. This Swartlander knew from a young age that he was different: He wanted to build bridges, lift other people and change people’s lives. Leo Cordom talked to Lunga Swelindawo about big dreams, to feel like a token black and his next big hurdle.

July 10, 2020 By: RESEP Team PDF

Common Questions about South Africa’s Covid-19 Response Answered using the International OxCGRT Dataset

I use the latest (16 May) version of the OxCGRT dataset to answer three fairly common questions about COVID-19 in the South African context. The three questions are: (1) Is South Africa’s curve a relatively flat one? (2.) Does South Africa have ‘one of the toughest lockdowns on earth’? (3.) How do restrictions and ‘flattening the curve’ relate to each other, and where does South Africa fit in?

May 20, 2020 By: Martin Gustafsson PDF

How Many Commercial Farms are there Really in South Africa and are Most of them ‘Large’?

Good policymaking requires reliable, comparable statistics over time. Despite there being an annual survey of agricultural firms in South Africa, confusion exists about the number of commercial farms in South Africa and the structure of the agricultural sector. According to the agricultural census in 2007, there were 39 966 commercial farms, while the agricultural survey mentions a figure of 64 192 and 57 126 in 2008 and 2017, respectively. With such diverging numbers across time, which figures should we trust and how does one analyse trends in the sector and make evidence-based decisions?

May 19, 2020 By: Marlies Piek, Johann Kirsten PDF

What the Shifting Evidence on the Coronavirus means for School Re-openings in South Africa

It is critical that the debates leading up to the re-opening of South Africa’s schools, and the actual process of re-opening, which will almost certainly occur in stages, be informed by the emerging medical evidence and reports on best school practices. Re-opening the pre-school sector, covering around 2.4 million children, and the earliest school grades, seems least risky in terms of infections. Moreover, there are strong educational and nutritional arguments which favour prioritising these levels.

May 12, 2020 By: Martin Gustafsson PDF