Farming in South Africa is being hobbled by power cuts and poor roads. Rural towns are being hit hardest
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GUEST – Wandile Sihlobo is the Chief Economist of the Agricultural Business Chamber of South Africa (Agbiz)
South Africa’s agriculture has had great consecutive seasons since 2019/20. The sector’s gross value added grew by 14.9% in 2020, 8.8% in 2021 and modestly by 0.3% in 2022 . This was primarily supported by favourable weather conditions. The current season is also likely to deliver solid growth for the sector, with variation across sub-sectors. We already see prospects of large crops across the country. Export performance is likely be robust, especially with a weaker rand exchange rate, which makes South African products more competitively priced in the global market. Still, the sector is not reaching its full potential. A number of factors stand in the way of even greater successes and greater participation of black farmers in commercial value chains.
South Africa’s agriculture has had great consecutive seasons since 2019/20. The sector’s gross value added grew by 14.9% in 2020, 8.8% in 2021 and modestly by 0.3% in 2022 . This was primarily supported by favourable weather conditions. The current season is also likely to deliver solid growth for the sector, with variation across sub-sectors. We already see prospects of large crops across the country. Export performance is likely be robust, especially with a weaker rand exchange rate, which makes South African products more competitively priced in the global market. Still, the sector is not reaching its full potential. A number of factors stand in the way of even greater successes and greater participation of black farmers in commercial value chains.
