Constraints To Growth And Employment: Evidence From The Greater Durban Metropolitan Area

The province of KwaZulu-Natal (henceforth KZN) is an important contributor to overall national economic performance in South Africa. In 1996, data from the Census of Manufacturing emphasised that KZN ranked second after Gauteng across a series of economic indicators (see for instance Annex Table 1 - part 1, p. 86). Although it is difficult to establish with accuracy how this position has evolved since 1996, WEFA estimates allows one to build on previous information from the 1996 Census of Manufacturing. WEFA data suggests that KZN manufacturing activities have grown but potentially not as rapidly as other South African provinces and thus that the rate of manufacturing expansion might be below the country average (see also Statistics South Africa, 2002, Figure 3, p. 2). Presently, KZN contributes to about 15.5% of South Africa's gross domestic product and, within KZN industries, manufacturing represents 23% of the Province own gross domestic product at market prices (see Annex Table 1 - parts 1 and 2, p. 86). Figure 1 below shows the distribution of South Africa's manufacturing gross domestic product across provinces; manufacturing in KZN contributes 22% of South Africa's manufacturing gross domestic product against 39% for Gauteng.