期待工資：南非的經濟特區困境

Abstract

2019年5月\n本論文旨在研究，南非在2000年至2010年期間，透過其四個經濟特區（IDZ）開展出口導向經濟失敗的原因。這些經濟特區的前10年，未能獲得足夠的外國直接投資，以抵消南非納稅人建立特區的成本，而且情況沒有太大改善。這些南非特區，是以東亞新興工業化國家（NICs）的成功為藍本，並且在大多數情況下，提供了相當於或高於平均水平的激勵措施。這些特區未能創造出口型經濟和數百萬無技能的南非人就業，因而引發了一個問題：像工資高於平均水平的南非這樣的中高收入國家，是否可以透過邊緣國家的低工資廉價勞工來解決其經濟問題。然後，本研究旨在表明，南非這個半邊緣國家的工資成本，對於希望通過獲得廉價的勞動力來增加利潤的早期製造業的核心投資者來說，是一個主要的障礙。

May 2019\nAbstract\nThis thesis set out to research reasons for the failure of South Africa’s efforts to launch an export-oriented economy via its four Industrial Development Zones (IDZs) between 2000 and 2010. In the first 10 years of their existence, however, the zones failed to garner sufficient FDI to offset even the cost to the South African taxpayer in setting up the zones and the situation has not improved much. The South African zones were modelled on the successes of Newly Industrialised Countries (NICs) in East Asia and, in most cases, offered incentives that were on par or above par. The failure of the zones to create both an export-based economy and employment for millions of unskilled South Africans raises the question of whether a high middle income country like South Africa with higher than average wages can solve its economic woes by using low income, peripheral country methods that depend, for the most part, on cheap labour cost. This research then aims to show that wage cost in South Africa, a semi-peripheral country, acted as a major deterrent for core investors in early manufacturing seeking to increase their profits by accessing cheap labour pools.