South Africa's medium and high-tech manufacturing value added (% manufacturing value added) was 12.93% in 2024, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is down 11.49 percentage points from 24.43% in 2014.
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 12.93% | 2024 |
| Five years earlier | 24.43% | 2019 |
| Ten years earlier | 24.43% | 2014 |
| Highest | 31.75% | 1995 |
| Lowest | 8.87% | 2021 |
| Average since 2015 | 17.8% | 2015–2024 |
| First recorded | 27.85% | 1990 |
What the numbers say
In 2024, South Africa's medium and high-tech manufacturing value added (% manufacturing value added) rose 0.23 percentage points on 2023 (from 12.7% to 12.93%).
Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was −0.55 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 2.83 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.3 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.
On record, the biggest yearly rise was 5 percentage points in 1993 and the biggest yearly fall was 13.16 percentage points in 2020. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.
From 2015 to 2024 the straight-line trend is downward, about 1.92 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 68% of the movement over 10 observed years.
Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.
How it compares
In 2024, South Africa had the 102nd highest value of the 152 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.
Closest to South Africa in the 2024 ranking
- Lebanon — 99th of 152: 14.56%
- Nicaragua — 100th of 152: 13.78%
- Costa Rica — 101st of 152: 13.09%
- Papua New Guinea — 103rd of 152: 12.61%
- Peru — 104th of 152: 12.3%
- Bolivia — 105th of 152: 11.94%
What this measures
The proportion of medium and high-tech industry value added in total value added of manufacturing
Limitations: Value added by economic activity should be reported at least at 3-digit ISIC for compiling MHT values. Missing values at country level are imputed based on the methodology from Competitive Industrial Performance Report (UNIDO, 2017. Conversion to USD or difference in ISIC combinations may cause discrepancy between national and international figures. For additional information please see UNIDO (2017): http://stat.unido.org/content/publications/volume-i%252c-competitive-industrial-performance-report-2016
All 35 values
| Year | Medium and high-tech manufacturing value added (% manufacturing value added) |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 12.93 |
| 2023 | 12.7 |
| 2022 | 10.04 |
| 2021 | 8.87 |
| 2020 | 11.27 |
| 2019 | 24.43 |
| 2018 | 24.43 |
| 2017 | 24.43 |
| 2016 | 24.43 |
| 2015 | 24.43 |
| 2014 |
Medium and high-tech manufacturing value added (% manufacturing value added) in nearby economies
- Angola — 4.43% (2024)
- Botswana — 26.5% (2024)
- Burundi — 2.79% (2024)
- Cabo Verde — 27.1% (2024)
- Cameroon — 4.26% (2024)
- Central African Republic — 9.25% (2024)
- Congo, Rep. — 7.85% (2024)
- Côte d'Ivoire — 7.33% (2024)
More economic policy & debt data for South Africa
- Trade in services (% of GDP) — 9.32% (2025)
- Communications, computer, etc. (% of service imports, BoP) — 44.9% (2025)
- Primary income payments (BoP, current US$) — US$20.32 billion (2025)
- Imports of goods and services (current US$, BoP) — US$126.24 billion (2025)
- Insurance and financial services (% of service imports, BoP) — 5.58% (2025)
- Goods imports (current US$, BoP) — US$104.47 billion (2025)
- Service imports (current US$, BoP) — US$21.77 billion (2025)
- Charges for the use of intellectual property, payments (BoP, current US$) — US$1.74 billion (2025)
- Imports of goods, services and primary income (current US$, BoP)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is South Africa's medium and high-tech manufacturing value added (% manufacturing value added)?
- 12.93% in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 1990?
- It is down 14.91 percentage points from 27.85% in 1990. The highest value was 31.75% in 1995 and the lowest 8.87% in 2021.
- How does South Africa rank?
- 102nd highest of 152 economies with data for 2024.
- Is the latest change in medium and high-tech manufacturing value added (% manufacturing value added) unusual for South Africa?
- In 2024, South Africa's medium and high-tech manufacturing value added (% manufacturing value added) rose 0.23 percentage points on 2023 (from 12.7% to 12.93%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was −0.55 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 2.83 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.3 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator NV.MNF.TECH.ZS.UN, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Competitive Industrial Performance (CIP) database, UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.
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