Department of Economics, Stellenbosch University

31/07/2026

Please apply!

The South African Economics Pipeline Project identifies South Afric...

09/03/2026

No need to RSVP. Come early to find a seat!

Join us this Friday for an interview with Tyler Cowen!

08/10/2025

New postdocs available for 2026!

Want to lead research on South Africa's economic past, present and future?

New postdocs available at Stellenbosch University!

19/10/2024

Our podcast with James Robinson, recorded two weeks before news of his Nobel Prize in Economics, is now available here or wherever you get your podcasts:

EPISODE 3: Jonathan and I speak to Nobel laureate James Robinson about black economic empowerment, the myth of the Weberian state, and the unique development pathways emerging in Africa...

14/10/2024

Today's Nobel Prize in Economics is rather personal.

With Dieter von Fintel, Calumet Links, Sophia Du Plessis and Department of Economics, Stellenbosch University.

https://www.ourlongwalk.com/p/institutions-and-generosity-matter

24/09/2024

Why do good intentions by international aid workers often lead to unintended negative outcomes? What led European settler farmers to frequently view African workers as lazy? How should African leaders grapple with the tension between embracing Western ideas without being dominated by them?

Jonathan Schoots and I discuss these – and many more – questions in the first podcast interview with Princeton University author and historian Bronwen Everill. Bronwen's latest book – Africonomics – is out in October.

The podcast episode is available on the Our Long Walk substack today (link below) or on your favourite podcast platform tomorrow.

EPISODE 1: Jonathan and I speak to Princeton historian Bronwen Everill about aid workers in Africa, the outside options of farm workers, compensation payments in Senegal, and why historians write well

09/09/2024

Is South Africa over or underperforming at the Olympics?

To answer this, it helps to plot our historical performance...

But it will require patience

16/08/2024

"Conquering territory was a fatal strategy. Despite the VOC’s increased revenue from tolls and taxes, the costs of protecting and administering the territories were always greater. Although the British East India Company did slightly better from these revenue streams – notably because of the capture, in 1757 at the Battle of Plassey, of the lucrative Indian market and the Chinese o***m trade – it would also come under frequent financial strain, and the company was dissolved by the mid-nineteenth century."

A preview of the fully updated Chapter 11 of Our Long Walk to Economic Freedom, to be released in January.

A fully updated Chapter 11 of Our Long Walk to Economic Freedom

12/08/2024

Which country won the Paris 2024 Olympics?

Here I dive down into long-run medal statistics (and GDP data) to show the over and underperformers at the Olympic Games this year.

In short, if you thought All Black Rugby was the only thing New Zealanders were good at, you'd be wrong. But there are a few other countries that are quickly catching up.

📜 https://bit.ly/4clbXsf

17/06/2024

This semester, I assigned my second-year economic history students an essay and encouraged them to use all available tools, including AI like ChatGPT.

The results were disheartening. Many students let AI write significant parts of their essays, leading to work that lacked depth and originality.

It's clear that while AI can assist in writing, it shouldn't replace critical thinking and creativity. The challenge now is to teach students to use these technologies responsibly and ethically.

Read more in my latest blog post:

Advice for writing with large language models