By Nokwanda Maseko
Nokwanda is a senior economist at TIPS (Trade and Industrial Policy Strategies). Her work at TIPS is at the intersection of industrial policy, gender and the just transition. Nokwanda’s work on industrial policy largely focuses on trade, writing in leading publications like the TIPS Import Tracker.
Her other publications include a working paper for the Presidential Climate Commission on unemployment and sustainable livelihoods; a TIPS policy brief on gender and the just transition; as well as an analysis of the petroleum-based transport value chain for the Sector Jobs Resilience plans.
Nokwanda says: “The US accounts for about 7% of South Africa’s imports, and around 7% of South Africa’s total exports. Though we mainly import manufactures from the US, they import critical minerals from South Africa. This is key for both trade and the just transition. South Africa could find alternative markets for its imports and exports, but the US will need access to South Africa’s minerals (platinum, palladium etc.). This gives South Africa leverage to negotiate better terms. How we wield that leverage will be one of the key factors that determine where we go as a country.”
