P0276 - Survey of Employers and the Self-employed (SESE)

The main aim of the Survey of Employers and the Self-Employed (SESE) report is to provide information on the characteristics of micro- and small businesses in South Africa and to gain an understanding of their operation and access to services. read more »

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SESE - The contribution of small and micro enterprises to the economy of the country: A survey of non-VAT-registered businesses in South Africa

In South Africa at present, the contribution of small and microbusinesses to the economy of the country has not been sufficiently estimated. This publication contains numerous tables reporting on the results of a 2001 survey which focused on businesses not registered for value-added tax (VAT).read more »

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Mangaung

Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality is a Category A municipality. It is situated in the Free State province, in the central interior of South Africa.  The Free State is bordered by Gauteng, the Eastern Cape, Northern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and North West provinces, as well as the neighbouring country of Lesotho.

Mangaung, meaning “the place of the cheetah”, accentuates the vibrant, dynamic and energetic character of the tourism industry in the “City on the move (at the heart of it all)”.  The economy is strongly driven by the government sector, which has seen the fastest growth in the last five years as a result of increased government programmes in livelihoods improvement interventions.  The finance sector is the second-fastest growing sector due to very active estate and construction activities. Small businesses have a major role to play in the Mangaung economy, in terms of employment creation, income generation and output growth.

Cities/Towns: Bloemfontein, Botshabelo, Mangaung, Thaba Nchu Main Economic Sectors: Government services, finance

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Polokwane

Polokwane Municipality is situated in the central part of the Limpopo Province. The municipality shares the name with the biggest town in Limpopo called Polokwane. Locally it shares borders with three other local municipalities within Capricorn District as well as local municipalities in Mopani and Waterberg Districts. It is the largest metropolitan complex in the north and a major economic centre with 38 wards. Its proximity to the neighboring countries of Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Swaziland makes it a perfect gateway to Africa and an attractive tourist destination. The settlement types indicates that it is more urban than rural.read more »

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eDumbe

èDumbe Local Municipality is situated in the north-western part of KwaZulu-Natal. It covers an area of 3 239 km².The municipal area of jurisdiction is demarcated into 8 wards which is predominantly rural in nature. The èDumbe Municipality is located in one of the poorest and poverty stricken district municipalities in KwaZulu-Natal. (It forms part of Presidential Nodes!). éDumbe is a gateway to KwaZulu-Natal Province and it is a shorter route from Mpumalanga Province to Durban or Pietermaritzburg. In that sense it can attract many tourists who are exploring KZN.read more »

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Nxuba

Nxuba Local Municipality is a municipality in the Amathole District, situated in the Eastern Cape Province. Its administrative seat is the town of Adelaide. The entire municipal area falls within the former Ciskei homeland area. The urban population is mainly located in the two small towns of Adelaide and Bedford

Source: (www.nxuba.org.za).

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Maluti a Phofung

Maluti-A-Phofung local municipality is situated in the Free State. Maluti-A-Phofung is a local municipality and was established on 5 December 2001, and comprises of four former TLC local authorities, which are Qwaqwa Rural, Phuthaditjhaba, Harrismith and Kestell. The municipality is comprised of 35 wards and covers approximately 4 421 km2 in extent. Phuthaditjhaba is the urban centre of Qwaqwa and serves as the administrative head office of Maluti-A-Phofung municipality. Surrounding Phuthaditjhaba are the rural villages of Qwaqwa, established on tribal land administered by the Department of Land Affairs. Harrismith is a service center for the surrounding rural areas and a trading belt serving the national road, N3, which links the Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces. Harrismith is surrounded by Tshiame located 12 km to the west and Intabazwe, which is located 1,5 km to the north. The town is an economic hub for people living in Tshiame, Intabazwe and Qwaqwa. Kestell is a service center for the surrounding agricultural oriented rural area, with Tlholong as the township. Kestell is situated along the N5 road that links Harrismith with Bethlehem. The rural areas of Maluti-A-Phofung comprise commercial farms and major nature conservation centres such as Qwaqwa National Park, Platberg, Sterkfontein Dam and the Maluti Mountain Range. The area is not only a tourist attraction destination, but also makes a big contribution in generating gross agricultural income for the whole of the province and is also highly regarded for its beef production.read more »

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Agricultural Statistics

The history of agricultural statistics in South Africa goes back as far back as the beginning of the 20th century. With the exception of the World Wars and great depression years, an agricultural census was conducted on annual basis in the first half of the 20th century. As agriculture’s contribution to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) decreased over the years, so did the frequency of conducting agricultural censuses. Post 1994, agricultural censuses have been conducted on a five yearly basis, with annual surveys being conducted in between the census years. Until now, agricultural censuses and surveys have largely concentrated on commercial agriculture leaving out small-scale and subsistence agriculture. In 2009, Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) conducted an audit of agricultural statistics in the country. One of the findings was that the country lacked information on smallholder and subsistence agriculture. The current list of farmers being used to conduct surveys was mainly confined to commercial agriculture. A decision was taken that three questions related to agriculture would be included in the Population Census 2011 (Census 2011) questionnaire. The main objective was to identify all households involved in agriculture in the country, so that a complete frame of all individuals and entities involved in agriculture (both subsistence and commercial) could be generated. This will allow for a comprehensive agricultural census to be conducted.read more »

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Crime statistics

  Crime prevention and ultimate elimination is one of the priority goals of the National Development Plan (NDP). Crime affects all people irrespective of their background, and it is a topic that attracts a lot of media attention. Analysis will show that some groupings are affected by certain types of crime more than others. Crime statistics are essential in order to understand the temporal and spatial dynamics of crime. Such understanding is vital for planning targeted interventions and assessing progress made towards achieving a crime free nation where "people living in South Africa feel safe at home, at school and at work, and they enjoy a community life free of fear. Women walk freely in the streets and children play safely outside". There are two major sources of crime statistics in South Africa, namely the South African Police Service (SAPS) and Statistics South Africa (Stats SA). The other smaller sources such as the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) and the Medical Research Council (MRC) are by no means insignificant, as they provide statistics for types of crime not adequately covered by the major players, such as domestic violence. While the methodologies used by the SAPS and Stats SA are very different, the two institutions produce crime statistics that complement each other. The SAPS produces administrative data of crime reported to police stations by victims, the public and crime reported as a result of police activity. Stats SA produces crime statistics estimated from household surveys. Crimes reported to the SAPS do not always have the same definitions as crime statistics produced from VOCS. In addition, not all crimes reported by the SAPS are reported by VOCS and vice versa. Working in close collaboration with Stats SA, the South African Police Service has undertaken to align its Classification of Crime for Statistical Purposes (CCSP) to the International Classification of Crime for Statistical Purposes (ICCS). Highlights of the 2017/18 Victims of Crime report Aggregate crime levels increased in 2017/18 compared to 2016/17. It is estimated that over 1,5 million incidences of household crime occurred in South Africa in 2017/18, which constitutes an increase of 5% compared to the previous year. Incidences of crime on individuals are estimated to be over 1,6 million, which is an increase of 5% from the previous year. Aggregate household crime levels increased in Free State, KwaZulu-Natal, North West, Gauteng and Mpumalanga. Individual crime levels increased in Free State, North West and Gauteng. North West experienced a drastic increase of 80% in the individual crime level. Perceptions of South Africans on crime in 2017/18 were more skeptical compared to the previous year. About 42% thought property crime increased during the past three years. This is an increase of 6,9% from the previous year. 46% thought violent crime increased during the past three years, an increase of 4,5% over the previous year. Western Cape was the most skeptical about crime trends, as 84% of Western Cape residents thought that crime in South African increased or stayed the same. Mpumalanga was the least skeptical among the nine provinces, where 65% thought that crime increased or stayed the same during the past three years. Crimes that are feared most are those that are most common. An estimated 79% of South Africans felt safe walking alone in their neighbourhoods during the day, which is a decrease of 6,7% from last year. About 32% of South Africans felt safe walking alone in their neighbourhoods at night, constituting an increase of 8% from last year. The highlights for household and individual experiences of crime from the 2016/17 VOCS report are as follows:  read more »

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Economic Growth

The diverse structure of the South African economy is a critical aspect of its historical and current growth performance.  The manufacturing sector continues to occupy a significant share of the South Africa economy, despite its relative importance declining from 19 percent in 1993 to about 17 percent in 2012 in real terms.

In line with structural changes in many economies, it not surprising to observe that the finance, real estate and business services sector has increase its relative importance of 17 per cent in 1993 to approximately 24 per cent in 2012. These two sectors and a few more are an important part of the South African growth story since the dawn of democracy.

Despite that, less than a decade into the 21st century, many countries, including South Africa, experienced the global economic crisis.This has affected economic growth in South Africa over the last four years, prompting a deceleration in rate of economic growth.

South Africa experienced an average growth rate of approximately 5 per cent in real terms between 2004 and 2007. However, the period 2008 to 2012 only recorded average growth just above 2 per cent; largely a result of the global economic recession.

Of the nine provinces in South Africa, three power houses stand out. Gauteng, Kwazulu-Natal and Western Cape collectively contribute a significant portion to the country’s value added, reported at over 60 percent.

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National Accounts

The diverse structure of the South African economy is a critical aspect of its historical and current growth performance. The manufacturing sector continues to occupy a significant share of the South Africa economy, despite its relative importance declining from 19 percent in 1993 to about 17 percent in 2012 in real terms. In line with structural changes in many economies, it not surprising to observe that the finance, real estate and business services sector has increase its relative importance of 17 per cent in 1993 to approximately 24 per cent in 2012. These two sectors and a few more are an important part of the South African growth story since the dawn of democracy.read more »

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Inflation

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) and Producer Price Index (PPI) are the two primary measures of inflation for South Africa. Both indicators are published on a monthly basis.The Consumer Price Index tracks the rate of change in the prices of goods and services purchased by consumers. The headline CPI is used as the inflation target measure which guides the South African Reserve Bank on the setting of interest rates.

The Producer Price Index tracks the rate of change in the prices charged by producers of goods. Stats SA publishes PPIs for different industries with the PPI for final manufactured goods being the headline PPI. Additional PPIs are compiled for Agriculture, forestry and fishing; Mining and quarrying; Electricity and water; Intermediate manufactured goods; Imports and Exports; and Construction.

The PPI is widely used by businesses as a contract escalator and as a general indicator of inflationary pressures in the economy.

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