National Planning Commission, TIPS and OECD

Policy Forum: How to address Inequality and Poverty in South Africa

09:00-13:00,   7 June 2011

Reserve Bank, Pretoria

PROGRAMME

09:00 – 09:20

Introduction and opening remarks

National Planning Commission (NPC) and OECD

09:20 – 11:00        SESSION I: Inequality and poverty – international and national evidence

09:20 – 09:40

Chair: Kuben Naidoo, NPC, The Presidency

Presentation Michael Förster, OECD Secretariat: International trends in inequality and poverty

·         Growing inequalities in OECD countries and emerging economies: trends, drivers and policy responses

·         How does South Africa compare?

09:40 – 10:00

Presentation Marcelo Cortes Neri, Fundacao Getulo Vargas: Longer-term and recent developments in poverty and inequality in Brazil

·         A decade of declining inequality in Brazil

·         The central role of social and labour market policies

10:00 – 10:20

Presentation Murray Leibbrandt SALDRU, UCT: Changes in South African poverty and inequality since the fall of apartheid The changing structure of poverty in South Africa

·         Key drivers of income inequality

·         Policy implications

10:20 – 10:40

Presentation Kate Philip, TIPS and Ivan Turok, HSRC: Impacts of Structural Inequality in South Africa

·         The structure of the economy

·         Spatial inequality

10:40 – 11:00

Discussion: Question and answers

11:00 – 11:20

Tea

11:20 – 13:00      SESSION II: Inequality and poverty – policy options

11:20 – 12:30

Chair: Alan Hirsch, Department of Performance Monitoring and Evaluation, The Presidency

Roundtable discussion: What are the policy options to tackle inequality and poverty in South Africa?

-          Wiseman K Magasela, Department of Social Development

-        Andrew Donaldson, National Treasury

-        Neva Makgetla, Department of Economic Development

-          Fernando Kleiman, Head Federative Advisory Office, Ministry of Social Development and Fight against Hunger, Brazil

-          Martin Hirsch, President Civil Service Agency, France

-          Stefano Scarpetta, Deputy Director, Employment, Labour and Social Affairs, OECD

12:30 – 13:00

Discussion: Question and answers