Do financial development and personal remittances matter in South African economic growth? A bound testing investigation

This study explores the relationship amongst financial development, remittances and the economic growth of South Africa using quarterly data spanning the period 1995Q01 to 2015Q04. The study used Augmented Dickey-Fuller (ADF) and Phillips-Perron (PP) techniques for the unit root test and the variables were found to be stationary at level and at first difference. Findings from the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) bound testing approach to co-integration revealed that a long-run relationship exists amongst these variables. Also, the Error Correction Model (ECM) showed that it required a 36% quarterly speed for maladjustment in the model to return equilibrium. This study concluded that the financial development sector should be improved to engender sufficient and adequate performance that would led to an effective impact of a long-run GDP growth. An increase in the gross capital formation that could lead to a long-run decrease in GDP growth should be avoided. Policy makers should formulate policies that could improve financial development in order to enhance the country’s economy to reap the potential gain of remittance which could enhance economic growth.