The recession ends as GDP climbs by 2,2%
The South African economy grew by 2,2% quarter-on-quarter (seasonally adjusted and annualised) in the third quarter of 2018, bringing to an end the country’s second recession since 1994. Higher contributions to growth in a number of industries – most notably in manufacturing, transport as well as finance and business services – were enough to lift read more »
Tourism jobs grow despite sluggish economy
With concerns over job losses in major industries, the tourism sector has shown some resilience in the face of a tough economic climate. In 2017, the sector had its most successful year of job creation in recent times. The tourism sector created 31 752 net new jobs in 2017.1 This is the most number of net read more »
General government spending slows in 2016/17
Indicative of an economy under strain, expenditure by general government increased by just 4,7% from 2015/16 to 2016/17. This is the lowest annual rise in spending on record since 2005/06, when Stats SA started publishing the current series of its Financial statistics of consolidated general government report. The latest financial data provide an updated picture read more »
World Toilet Day 2018
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), around 60% of the global population, or 4,5 billion people, either have no toilet at home or one that doesn’t safely manage excreta. To commemorate World Toilet Day, which is celebrated on 19 November, the focus will be on improving access read more »
Four facts about indigent households
If South Africa were a suburb of 100 households, 22 would be beneficiaries of government’s indigent programme. Stats SA’s recent Non-financial census of municipalities provides insight into those households that struggle to afford access to basic services. Fact 1: 22% of households are classified as indigent In 2001 South Africa adopted a policy intended read more »
Who is most likely to be affected by long-term unemployment?
South Africa’s official unemployment rate is on the increase. In the past 10 years (2008–2018), the unemployment rate has increased from 21,5% to almost 28,0%. Unemployment refers to those persons who were not employed, had taken steps to look for a job or to start a business and were available to take up a job read more »
Higher education continues to cut capital spending
Capital expenditure by South Africa’s higher education institutions continued to fall, for the second consecutive year. The country’s 20 universities and 6 universities of technology recorded a 5,4% drop in capital expenditure in 2017 compared with 2016, falling from R6,22 billion to R5,89 billion. This followed a 0,7% drop in 2016, according to Stats SA’s recent Financial read more »
How much does SA business spend on its employees?
About 14% of total spending, according to recent figures. A quick review of the data shows that this proportion has remained relatively stable over the last decade. In the second quarter of 2009, employment costs contributed 15% of total expenditure in the formal business sector. Although there hasn’t been a major change over time for read more »
While crime increases, fear rises and trust in criminal justice system drops
The general level of crime as estimated by VOCS has been declining during the past five years but increased in 2016/17 and 2017/18. Household crimes increased by 5% to a total of 1,5 million incidences of crime while individual crime also increased by 5% to a total of 1,6 incidences, affecting 1,4 million individuals aged read more »
An update to municipal spending and revenue (June 2018)
South Africa’s 257 municipalities spent a total of R88,6 billion in the quarter ended June 2018, 18% more than the R75,1 billion spent during the quarter ended March 2018. Municipal revenue was down, however, falling by 6% over the same period, from R87,6 billion (March quarter) to R82,6 billion (June quarter). Stats SA’s latest Quarterly financial statistics of municipalities read more »