Email this article 
Hide
Show all
Original Research
Theoretical analysis of state capture and its manifestation as a governance problem in South Africa
Submitted: 14 September 2017 | Published: 14 June 2018
About the author(s)
Maurice O. Dassah, Faculty of Business and Management Sciences, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, South AfricaAbstract
State capture became topical in South Africa in March 2016 following the dismissal of the then Minister of Finance, Nhlanhla Nene, on 09 December 2015. ‘Nenegate’ revealed poor understanding of state capture among politicians and the general public. The literature indicates that state capture lacks analytical clarity as there is no clear demarcation between legitimate political lobbying and state capture created by corruption. The research question addressed in this article is: What is state capture and how is it manifested in South Africa? Firstly, it systematically unpacks the phenomenon as a type of business–state relationship distinct from influence, corruption and lobbying and outlines its types, features and essence. Secondly, the article explores state capture in contemporary South Africa. Methodology-wise, a combination of literature study and current research reports is used to illuminate the phenomenon and its manifestation. The article contributes to existing knowledge by not only clarifying a concept conflated with corruption but also analysing the manifestations of state capture in South Africa.
Keywords
Metrics
Total abstract views: 7364Total article views: 29978
Crossref Citations
1. Korupsi State Capture Sebagai Crime Against Humanity
Hana Ramiza
Media Iuris vol: 3 issue: 2 first page: 181 year: 2020
doi: 10.20473/mi.v3i2.20891
2. State capture and security intelligence agencies in Serbia
Predrag Petrović
Journal of Regional Security vol: 16 issue: 2 first page: 151 year: 2021
doi: 10.5937/jrs0-29333
3. Enhancing Public Service Delivery in a VUCA Environment in South Africa: A Literature Review
Lance Barbier, Robertson K. Tengeh
RUDN Journal of Public Administration vol: 9 issue: 4 first page: 418 year: 2022
doi: 10.22363/2312-8313-2022-9-4-418-437
4. State Capture—Institutionalized Corruption of the South African Revenue Service
Jennifer H. Heckel, Prescott C. Ensign
Thunderbird International Business Review vol: 68 issue: 1 first page: 123 year: 2026
doi: 10.1002/tie.70018
5. The African National Congress and South Africa’s Public Service: A Crisis of Dominance and Accountability
Xolani Thusi, Kgalema Mashamaite
JISR management and social sciences & economics vol: 21 issue: 3 first page: 73 year: 2023
doi: 10.31384/jisrmsse/2023.21.3.4
6. Responsabilidad social corporativa en la política exterior canadiense: un caso de captura corporativa del Estado*
Cynthia Verónica Arredondo Cabrera
Norteamérica vol: 20 issue: 2 year: 2025
doi: 10.22201/cisan.24487228e.2025.2.739
7. An Analysis of the Development of State Capture and Its Indicator in South Africa, 2016–2018
John Mamokhere
Commonwealth Youth and Development vol: 19 issue: 2 year: 2022
doi: 10.25159/2663-6549/11105
8. Shared value as shared power: Business in South Africa’s democratic transition
Brian Ganson
South African Journal of Business Management vol: 54 issue: 1 year: 2023
doi: 10.4102/sajbm.v54i1.3639
9. State Capture and Elite Resistance to the Sustainable Development Goals in Paraguay
Andrew Nickson, Peter Lambert
Latin American Perspectives vol: 52 issue: 3 first page: 82 year: 2025
doi: 10.1177/0094582X251324509
10. Strengthening the National Health Insurance Bill for mental health needs: response from the Psychological Society of South Africa
Sharon Kleintjes, Daniel Hilbrand den Hollander, Suntosh R Pillay, Anne Kramers-Olen
South African Journal of Psychology vol: 51 issue: 1 first page: 134 year: 2021
doi: 10.1177/0081246320954317
11. Capturing South Africa's developmental state: State‐society relations and responses to state capture
Isaac Khambule
Public Administration and Development vol: 41 issue: 4 first page: 169 year: 2021
doi: 10.1002/pad.1912
12. Textual Criticism, Literary Criticism, and State Capture: Returning 3 Reigns 12:24p–t to the Canon of Local African Communities
Gerald West
Journal for Semitics vol: 32 issue: 2 year: 2023
doi: 10.25159/2663-6573/13518
13. Causal theories explaining the erosion in South African state and public services: a theoretical overview
Rozenda Hendrickse
International Journal of Business Ecosystem & Strategy (2687-2293) vol: 6 issue: 2 first page: 222 year: 2024
doi: 10.36096/ijbes.v6i2.505
14. “Ideología de género”, populismo autoritario y políticas sexuales
José Fernando Serrano Amaya
Nómadas issue: 50 first page: 155 year: 2019
doi: 10.30578/nomadas.n50a10
15. Approaches for curbing corruption in emerging economies
Sihle Lloyd Ndlovu, Emmanuel Mutambara
Corporate Governance and Organizational Behavior Review vol: 6 issue: 4, special issue first page: 253 year: 2022
doi: 10.22495/cgobrv6i4sip6
16. A Comparative Assessment of the Soundness of Financial Governance Systems for the Oversight of Mobile Money Services in Zimbabwe and South Africa
Charles Kamunjoma, Patrick Osode
Comparative and International Law Journal of Southern Africa vol: 58 issue: 3 year: 2025
doi: 10.25159/2522-3062/18000
17. The post-soviet Moldovan capitalism: between oligarchic political economy and reciprocity
Dorina Rosca
Post-Communist Economies vol: 34 issue: 1 first page: 52 year: 2022
doi: 10.1080/14631377.2020.1793583
18. Demystifying the concept of state or regulatory capture from a theoretical public economics perspective
Chonzi Mulenga Mulenga, Nilesh Mulenga James
African Journal of Political Science and International Relations vol: 12 issue: 7 first page: 132 year: 2018
doi: 10.5897/AJPSIR2018.1105
19. Corruption in South Africa: an ongoing challenge to good governance
Shikha Vyas-Doorgapersad
International Journal of Business Ecosystem & Strategy (2687-2293) vol: 6 issue: 4 first page: 453 year: 2024
doi: 10.36096/ijbes.v6i4.636