Rhodes hosts international Economics Conference

For the first time, Rhodes University is hosting the Biennial Conference of the Economics Society of South Africa (ESSA) this week. The conference began on Wednesday 30 August 2017 and will be ending this afternoon (Friday).

With over 250 delegates present, 251 papers on Curriculum Transformation are to be presented, of which 89 are presented by students.

Notable guest speakers at the Conference include Wendy Carlin, Professor of Economics at University College London (UCL) and Research Fellow of the Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR), and Sam Bowles, Professor of Economics at Sante Fe Institute in the US.

“The Conference is an opportunity for economists around Southern Africa and abroad to share their research and to network,” said Professor Gavin Keeton, Associate Professor at the Department of Economics and Economic History, and President of ESSA. “The theme of the conference, Curriculum Transformation, has never been more relevant than it is now in our country,”

The Economics Society of South Africa was established in 1925 as a discussion forum for economists in academic life, government and business.

It has a history of membership from Cabinet Ministers, Governors of the Reserve Bank, Chief Executives of Companies, Directors-General of Government Departments, Academic Leaders and prominent Economists.

The papers presented at the Conference address a number of topics ranging from electricity usage in South Africa and topics surrounding tertiary education in South Africa to issues surround crime and ideas surrounding dagga use in the country.