Energy supply in South Africa has become one of the biggest constraints on the country’s economic performance. PwC estimates that intermittent energy shortages cost the economy the equivalent of 5% of real GDP in 2022. Businesses absorbed that cost through outages, diesel generators and lost working hours.

South Africa’s public service faces growing pressure to do more with less. Budgets are tightening. Vacancies are rising. Citizens are demanding better service delivery. For years, government departments have focused on managing performance hitting targets in annual performance plans without measuring productivity, or how efficiently those targets

The agro-processing value chain in South Africa is one of the country’s largest and most strategically important manufacturing systems, contributing roughly R49 billion to the economy, supporting over 470,000 jobs, and accounting for 23% of total manufacturing output. But behind these strong headline numbers lies a persistent

The leather and footwear industry in South Africa has a history stretching back to the Cape Dutch settlers, yet the sector today is fighting for its place in a market flooded with cheap imports. Productivity SA’s latest research report, An Overview of the South African Leather and

The South African furniture industry is a labour-intensive manufacturing sector. It was worth $2.47 billion in 2024 and supports an estimated 26,000 formal jobs, plus tens of thousands more informal positions across the value chain. But the sector is still recovering. Load-shedding, rising input costs, and two

The South African automotive industry is one of the country’s most important economic engines. It contributes 4.9% to GDP, supports over 400 000 jobs, and ranks as the country’s 5th largest export sector. But behind these strong numbers lies a persistent challenge: productivity in the South African