Global Integration and Sustainability Transitions in Southern Africa: The Effect of Economic Globalisation on Resource Productivity in SACU

Persistent development constraints and material-intensive production have become central features of Southern Africa’s economic landscape. Globalisation has simultaneously intensified the region’s vulnerability to external shocks and heightened pressure to enhance resource efficiency and transition toward sustainable development. This study examines the effect of economic globalisation on resource productivity among members of the Southern African Customs Union (SACU), a highly integrated, resource-dependent, and economically diverse regional bloc. Using a panel econometric approach covering 1996–2023, the analysis employs a dynamic common correlated effects estimator and panel causality tests to identify long-run elasticities and causal relationships. Results indicate that economic globalisation exerts a significant and negative effect on resource productivity in SACU, with these effects driven primarily by the de jure dimension of the integration process. The findings reveal important complexities within this nexus, including core–periphery dynamics and the internal architectural characteristics of the customs union, with notable feedback loops also identified. The study contributes to the literature by demonstrating that it is not merely the extent of integration that matters for resource efficiency, but the quality and nature of that integration. In doing so, it offers a nuanced understanding of how regional institutional frameworks interact with globalisation to shape sustainability outcomes.