The relationship between foreign direct investment and economic growth in South Africa: Vector error correction analysis

Orientation: From the Growth, Employment and Redistribution (GEAR) strategy of 1996 to the currently implemented National Development Plan (NDP), the need to attract more foreign investors and promote exports in pursuit of economic growth and job creation has been emphasised. Research purpose: It i...

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Main Author: Tshepo S. Masipa
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: AOSIS 2018-05-01
Series:Acta Commercii
Subjects:
Online Access:https://actacommercii.co.za/index.php/acta/article/view/466
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author Tshepo S. Masipa
author_facet Tshepo S. Masipa
author_sort Tshepo S. Masipa
collection DOAJ
description Orientation: From the Growth, Employment and Redistribution (GEAR) strategy of 1996 to the currently implemented National Development Plan (NDP), the need to attract more foreign investors and promote exports in pursuit of economic growth and job creation has been emphasised. Research purpose: It is within this context that the purpose of this article was to determine the nexus between foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows and economic growth from 1980 to 2014. Research design, approach and method: The vector error correction model is employed to determine and estimate the long-run relationship between the variables in the model. Main findings: From the findings, it was found that economic growth shares a positive relationship with both FDIs and the real effective exchange rate, while sharing a negative long-run relationship with government expenditure. Practical and managerial implications: The article contributes towards the on going debates on the impact of FDIs on economic growth and job creation in the recipient countries. Accordingly, its findings reinforce the importance of attracting FDIs in South Africa and to what extent they affect economic growth and employment. Contribution or value-add: From a policy perspective, the attraction of foreign investors must target sources that can create jobs and boost the South African economy. It is vital for the government to strengthen its machinery to fight corruption to create an environment conducive for foreign investors. Hence, this article suggests that South Africa’s capacity to grow and create jobs also depends on the country’s performance to enhance gross domestic product growth and attract more FDIs. The attraction of FDIs should, however, not be seen as an end in itself but also as a means of supporting other initiatives such as eradicating poverty and inequalities in South Africa.
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spelling doaj.art-14492be5c8eb4759ba4a7977338bdf912022-12-21T17:32:08ZengAOSISActa Commercii2413-19031684-19992018-05-01181e1e810.4102/ac.v18i1.466304The relationship between foreign direct investment and economic growth in South Africa: Vector error correction analysisTshepo S. Masipa0Economics Department, School of Economics and Management, University of LimpopoOrientation: From the Growth, Employment and Redistribution (GEAR) strategy of 1996 to the currently implemented National Development Plan (NDP), the need to attract more foreign investors and promote exports in pursuit of economic growth and job creation has been emphasised. Research purpose: It is within this context that the purpose of this article was to determine the nexus between foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows and economic growth from 1980 to 2014. Research design, approach and method: The vector error correction model is employed to determine and estimate the long-run relationship between the variables in the model. Main findings: From the findings, it was found that economic growth shares a positive relationship with both FDIs and the real effective exchange rate, while sharing a negative long-run relationship with government expenditure. Practical and managerial implications: The article contributes towards the on going debates on the impact of FDIs on economic growth and job creation in the recipient countries. Accordingly, its findings reinforce the importance of attracting FDIs in South Africa and to what extent they affect economic growth and employment. Contribution or value-add: From a policy perspective, the attraction of foreign investors must target sources that can create jobs and boost the South African economy. It is vital for the government to strengthen its machinery to fight corruption to create an environment conducive for foreign investors. Hence, this article suggests that South Africa’s capacity to grow and create jobs also depends on the country’s performance to enhance gross domestic product growth and attract more FDIs. The attraction of FDIs should, however, not be seen as an end in itself but also as a means of supporting other initiatives such as eradicating poverty and inequalities in South Africa.https://actacommercii.co.za/index.php/acta/article/view/466foreign direct investmenteconomic growthgovernment expenditureeffective exchange rates
spellingShingle Tshepo S. Masipa
The relationship between foreign direct investment and economic growth in South Africa: Vector error correction analysis
Acta Commercii
foreign direct investment
economic growth
government expenditure
effective exchange rates
title The relationship between foreign direct investment and economic growth in South Africa: Vector error correction analysis
title_full The relationship between foreign direct investment and economic growth in South Africa: Vector error correction analysis
title_fullStr The relationship between foreign direct investment and economic growth in South Africa: Vector error correction analysis
title_full_unstemmed The relationship between foreign direct investment and economic growth in South Africa: Vector error correction analysis
title_short The relationship between foreign direct investment and economic growth in South Africa: Vector error correction analysis
title_sort relationship between foreign direct investment and economic growth in south africa vector error correction analysis
topic foreign direct investment
economic growth
government expenditure
effective exchange rates
url https://actacommercii.co.za/index.php/acta/article/view/466
work_keys_str_mv AT tsheposmasipa therelationshipbetweenforeigndirectinvestmentandeconomicgrowthinsouthafricavectorerrorcorrectionanalysis
AT tsheposmasipa relationshipbetweenforeigndirectinvestmentandeconomicgrowthinsouthafricavectorerrorcorrectionanalysis