Q4 GDP: Infrastructure investment key to building on Agri sector’s stellar performance
8 March 2022
The GDP result for the fourth quarter of 2021, which were announced by Stats SA on Tuesday, 8 March 2022, clearly demonstrate the immense contribution that the agricultural sector makes to the South African economy, as well as its potential to provide even greater opportunities for job creation and earning of foreign exchange through agricultural exports.
Yet the sector’s growth continues to be hindered by declining infrastructure, amongst many other challenges. Agri SA will therefore write to National Treasury to request a briefing for the sector on the plans in place to accelerate infrastructure investment, as announced by Minister Godongwana in his 2022 Budget Speech, and on the implementation of the Public Private Partnership framework.
In its GDP report, Stats SA announced a 1,2% growth in GDP in the fourth quarter of 2021. The report identified agriculture as one of the key drivers of growth. The agricultural sector was the best-performing economic sector, contributing 12,2% to the country’s total economic activity.
Despite these good results, Stats SA noted that the economy has yet to recover to the levels of the second quarter of 2021, before the civil unrest in July 2021 and the stricter lockdown measures of the third quarter.