Government and Public Policy (GAPP) Think-tank

What Government and Public Policy (GAPP) Think-tank does

The New South Institute (NSI) is a South Africa-based, non-profit policy think-tank founded by Ivor Chipkin and Jelena Vidojević, headquartered at the Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) in Illovo, Johannesburg. It produces evidence-based policy and applied research on the "complex problems of government in emergent democracies" — explicitly targeting "delicate democracies" in the Global South that are emerging from state capture, social fragmentation, and legacies of civil conflict. NSI's work is organised into five active research programmes: Public Service Reform, Histories of Government, Reforming Governance Resisting Capture, Migration Governance Reform, and South-South Dialogues (with a sub-programme called 'Missing Voices: Critical Thinking in Times of Polycrisis'). The offering is fundamentally research, advocacy and policy advisory in nature, not a technology product, though NSI states that a "big data capability and analytics" function underpins its research and supports evidence-based policy analysis.

NSI's deliverables span policy reports, briefs and applied research papers; a weekly podcast ('Governing Tomorrow'); webinars and conferences (including an Africa Public Service Day webinar and in-person seminars); a newsletter; a Reading Club; and earned-media placements on platforms such as CapeTalk, Daily Maverick, On Think Tanks, and Russia in Global Affairs. Distribution is free at the point of access; revenue is generated indirectly via donations and grants from foundations, development partners, and institutional supporters. NSI serves four named customer segments — governments and public-sector institutions (primary), civil society and anti-corruption coalitions (primary), the academic and research community, and media/public discourse — all in a horizontal-segmentation posture with no pricing tiers or commercial contracts.

NSI operates a go-to-market model that is community-led and event-driven: it influences policy through thought leadership, evidence-based advocacy, and partnerships with implementing organisations (DPSA, Public Service Commission of South Africa, the Anti-Corruption Coalition at GIBS, Blavatnik School of Government at Oxford, Centre for Policy Research India, Belgrade Centre for Security Policy, Southern Voice, On Think Tanks, Safe Passage, CASSI, Balkan Museum Network, University of Belgrade). Founder and team expertise in research, policy and advocacy is positioned as the core intangible asset, with domain depth on institutional reform and a curated 'living archive' of South African governance history as a compounding data asset.

Name

Government and Public Policy (GAPP) Think-tank

Legal name

New South Institute

Website

https://gapp-tt.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

New South Institute is a Johannesburg-based, non-profit think-tank producing evidence-based policy research on governance, anti-corruption, state capture and migration in Global South democracies, serving governments, civil society and academia through freely available publications, events and media.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Policy Research and Governance Consulting

NAICS

Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (54172)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Economic Research, Statistics & Policy Advisory (BPADAMAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Peace, Security Sector Reform & Stabilization Programs (BPADABAH)

Keywords

• Policy research think tank
• Governance research
• Public administration reform
• Anti-corruption research
• Institutional capacity building

Headquarters

HQ city

Johannesburg

HQ country

South Africa

HQ region

Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Donations and Grants: NSI operates as a non-profit think-tank funded through donations and likely institutional grants from foundations and development partners supporting governance and public policy research.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

New South Institute (NSI) is an independent non-profit think-tank providing evidence-based policy and applied research on complex problems of government in delicate democracies. It operates five active research programmes—Public Service Reform, Histories of Government, Reforming Governance Resisting Capture, Migration Governance Reform, and South-South Dialogues—producing policy reports, briefs, a podcast, and media commentary for governments, civil society, and the public.

Product overview

The New South Institute (NSI) is a think-tank offering a portfolio of five interconnected research programmes focused on evidence-based policy and applied research for emergent democracies. The core programmes cover Public Service Reform, Histories of Government, Reforming Governance, Resisting Capture, Migration Governance Reform, and South-South Dialogues (which includes the 'Missing Voices' sub-programme). NSI also produces a podcast ('Governing Tomorrow') and publishes research outputs. The organisation does not offer a technology product; its offerings are policy research, advocacy, publications, and media content.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Public Service Reform

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBCSP is listed as a partner organization, likely collaborating on security governance and public policy research across the Balkans and Southern Africa regions.
• Centre for Policy Research (CPR) IndiacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCPR India is a major policy research institution in South Asia listed as a partner, suggesting collaboration on comparative policy research and governance analysis.
• Campaign Against State Sponsored Impunity (CASSI)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCASSI works on issues of state impunity and accountability, aligning with NSI's focus on reforming governance and resisting capture.
• Balkan Museum Network (bmK)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMuseum network partner potentially contributing to historical and institutional memory research within NSI's Histories of Government programme.
• Safe PassagecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSafe Passage organization working on migration issues, aligning with NSI's Migration Governance Reform programme.
• Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford (BSG)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWorld-renowned governance research institution at Oxford University, providing academic rigor and international perspective to NSI's research programmes.
• Public Service Commission (PSC) South AfricacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment oversight body for public service in South Africa, directly relevant to NSI's Public Service Reform programme.
• University of BelgrademinorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner contributing to regional research capacity and access to academic networks in the Western Balkans.
• Southern VoicecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNetwork of Southern think tanks focused on policy research, directly aligning with NSI's role as a Global South policy research institution.
• On Think TankscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational network supporting and connecting think tanks globally, providing platforms for NSI to share research and collaborate with peer institutions.
• Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost institution for NSI headquarters; prominent business school providing academic infrastructure and corporate connections for policy research.
• Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSouth African government department responsible for public service transformation, key implementing partner for NSI's public service reform research.
• Anti-Corruption Coalition (ACC) at GIBScoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerNSI is working with ACC to produce practical research supporting government and civil society efforts against state capture and corruption.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Centre for Policy Research (CPR): India-based, evidence-driven public policy research institution covering governance, economic policy, and state reform. Already listed as an NSI core partner; operates a similar programmatic structure and serves governments and civil society in an emerging-market context.
• South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA): Johannesburg-based policy research institute covering international affairs, governance, and African development. Competes with NSI for the same South African policy donor pool and media platforms.
• Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP): Western Balkans-focused policy think tank working on security sector reform, democratic governance, and EU accession. Already an NSI core partner; operates a comparable evidence-based, advocacy-driven model in a different fragile-democracy context.
• Institute for Security Studies (ISS): Pretoria-based African think tank producing applied policy research on governance, peace, and security across the continent. Highly comparable to NSI's Migration Governance Reform and Histories of Government programmes in topic and African focus.

Broad incumbents

• Transparency International: Global anti-corruption movement producing governance indices, country reports, and policy recommendations. Adjacent to NSI's Reforming Governance Resisting Capture programme but operates at much greater scale.
• International Crisis Group: Global organisation working on conflict prevention and governance in fragile and conflict-affected states. Overlaps with NSI's work on civil conflict legacies, state capture, and migration governance.
• Overseas Development Institute (ODI): Large UK-based global development think tank with deep work on governance, state-building, and public policy in the Global South. A broader incumbent that often competes for the same multilateral and foundation funding as NSI.

Emerging players

• Afrobarometer: Pan-African research network that conducts regular surveys on governance, democracy, and public services across African countries. Its citizen-perspective data directly complements NSI's reform-focused research, and the organisations are referenced together in NSI webinars.
• Global Integrity: Independent anti-corruption and governance research and advocacy organisation with explicit focus on accountability and state capture. Closely comparable niche to NSI's Reforming Governance Resisting Capture programme at a smaller scale.

Regional players

• Southern Voice: Network of Global South think tanks coordinating evidence-based policy research for sustainable development. Already an NSI core partner; comparable mission and donor base, focused on Global South voice rather than single-country work.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Government and Public Policy (GAPP) Think-tank