Drought policy brief: Western Cape agriculture

"Research conducted into the economic impact of the drought on agriculture has revealed that the sector will take a higher than anticipated economic knock." The Drought policy brief: Western Cape agriculture, February 2018, "compiled by the Department of Agriculture, in collaboration with the Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy (BFAP), estimates that the impact of the drought on the province’s Gross Value Added will be R5.9 billion, representing an average production decline of around 20%. Agriculture and agri-processing contribute a combined R54 billion to the provincial GVA. Of all the province’s exports, 52% come from the agriculture and agri-processing sectors. As a sector, it represents 10% of the provincial GDP and employees 340 0000 people, mostly in rural areas."

"The macro-level impact assessment shows that the Western Cape agricultural sector is set to lose an estimated R5.9 billion in the 2017/18 season as a result of the drought. The impact of this dramatic drop in production, especially in highly labour intensive industries, has resulted in around 30 000 jobs being lost in the process. Anecdotal evidence from the labour force surveys confirms this decline. The findings suggest a severely negative impact on the agricultural sector and the financial losses estimated here suggest that many producers will come under extreme pressure and may not be able to remain on their farms."