South African agricultural exports to Africa increased by 16% in the fourth quarter of last year (Q4 2024), compared with the Q4 2023, the Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy (BFAP) reported, in its latest brief report, “Quarterly Trade Update 2024 Q4”. This increase was against the background of the country’s total agricultural exports stagnating over the same period. The total value of South African agricultural exports to Africa in Q4 2024 was about R30-billion. 

South Africa’s biggest market for agricultural exports in the world was the Southern African Development Community (SADC). This bloc accounted for nearly 50% of the country’s total agricultural exports, and this export trade grew by 17% from Q4 2023 to Q4 2024.

This increase was underpinned by a 23% increase in exports to Namibia, a 66% increase in exports to Zimbabwe, and a 139% increase in exports to Madagascar. However, the dramatic increase in exports to Madagascar came off a very low base, as the island country took less than 1% of South Africa’s agricultural exports. Namibia accounted for 8% of these exports and Zimbabwe for 10%.

South Africa also imported agricultural products from Africa. In Q4 2024 these imports were worth some R6-billion, which was 10% less than the figure for Q4 2023. South Africa thus had a strong net agricultural trade balance with Africa, of some R24-billion.

The country’s main agricultural exports to SADC and the rest of the continent were cereals (18% of the total), beverages (14%), processed cereals (6%), food preparation (also 6%), “miscellaneous” (9%) and “other products” (23%). The cereals exported were mainly maize, while the beverages were mainly wine and waters.

South Africa’s number one agricultural import was sugar products (which came mainly from Eswatini), which accounted for 29% of total agricultural imports. Next came fish products (8%), beverages (mainly beers from Namibia – 7%), wool (from Lesotho – also 7%), fruits (largely bananas and coconuts from Mozambique, again 7%) and “others” (17%).

“Intra-continental trade is important for South Africa as it seeks to unlock additional export markets in the context of the African Continental Free Trade Area,” observed the BFAP.