South Africa ranks among top 20 in protecting property rights

A new study shows that South Africa ranks among the top 20 countries that have a good track record in protecting property rights. The International Property Rights Index compared the protections of physical and intellectual property, to economic stability in 115 countries that represent 96% of the world's GDP. The report was released in Washington late last night.

It shows that countries that protect property rights enjoy nearly nine times higher GDP per capita than countries that rank lowest in property rights protection.

Property Rights Alliance’s Anne Dedigama says, "The foundation of this report is that there is a link between protection of property rights, both physical and intellectual, and the country's economic growth."

The Property Rights Alliance, which produced the report, says a stable political and legal environment fosters an environment where property rights are respected. "I think I would be concerned if I was in the bottom quintile where the property rights systems seem not to work well and the scoring is quite low, so South Africa being in the first top 20 indicates that there's more space for improvement," said Dedigama.

Most of the data used to compile the report was sourced from institutions such as the World Bank and the World Economic Forum. At the very top of the index are countries from Western Europe and North America. Five of the 10 countries at the bottom of the index are in Africa and are Angola, Zimbabwe, Burundi, Chad and Nigeria.

Manelisi Dubase, WashingtonSource: www.sabcnews.com

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