The most complete study to date is due to a Harvard team, led by Ricardo Hausmann and Federico Sturzenegger.13 They interrogate three accounts of the slowdown. One emphasizes global factors, and particularly weaker commodity 12  Dani Rodrik. “Understanding South Africa’s Economic Puzzles” Economics of Transition. Vol. 16(4). 2008. Available at: https://scholar.harvard.edu/files/dani-rodrik/files/understanding-south-africa.pdf 13 Ricardo Hausmann et al.
“Macroeconomic risks after a decade of microeconomic turbulence: South Africa 2007-2020” February 2022. Available at: https://sa-tied.wider.unu.edu/article/macroeconomic-risks-afterdecade-microeconomic-turbulence-south-africa-2007-2020  8  prices. The second is about macroeconomic policy, and specifically the possibility that low growth was due to tight monetary and fiscal policies. The third focuses on microeconomic effects, chiefly the productivity damage of state capture. The paper is well worth reading.