Structure of the Economy
Information from Focus Geography Grade 12
Economic sectors
Primary: Farming, forestry, fishing, hunting, mining.
Secondary: metal working, building, construction and the manufacturing of clothes, cars and
canned foods.
Tertiary: health, education, tourism, recreation, entertainment, local government, police and
the military, banking, financial services, libraries, retailing, goods transport, public transport
and garbage removal
The economic sectors’ contributions to the South African
economy
There are two ways of measuring the importance and value of the economic sectors to the
total economy of our country.
• Employment
• Value of goods and services produced
South Africa’s gross domestic product (GDP) is the total value of the goods and services that
all the employed people in South Africa produce in a year.
The use of statistical and graphical information
Graphs and statistical data are of value for:
• understanding the economics and geography of a country
• giving perspective on a region, such as a country or a part of it
• planning the funding and future development of a province
• identifying economic strengths and weaknesses of a country or of a province
• illustrating change over time.
Information from Focus Geography Grade 12
Economic sectors
Primary: Farming, forestry, fishing, hunting, mining.
Secondary: metal working, building, construction and the manufacturing of clothes, cars and
canned foods.
Tertiary: health, education, tourism, recreation, entertainment, local government, police and
the military, banking, financial services, libraries, retailing, goods transport, public transport
and garbage removal
The economic sectors’ contributions to the South African
economy
There are two ways of measuring the importance and value of the economic sectors to the
total economy of our country.
• Employment
• Value of goods and services produced
South Africa’s gross domestic product (GDP) is the total value of the goods and services that
all the employed people in South Africa produce in a year.
The use of statistical and graphical information
Graphs and statistical data are of value for:
• understanding the economics and geography of a country
• giving perspective on a region, such as a country or a part of it
• planning the funding and future development of a province
• identifying economic strengths and weaknesses of a country or of a province
• illustrating change over time.
