Minister in the Presidency, Mondli Gungubele on Thursday said the cabinet welcomed the recent positive developments as a result of government interventions aimed at stimulating growth of the South African economy.
Latest Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) figures show that unemployment in the country decreased from 35.3% in the fourth quarter of 2021 to 34.5% in the first three months of 2022.
“This is encouraging. The expanded unemployment rate has declined for a second quarter in a row,” the minister said when he addressed reporters following a cabinet meeting in Cape Town.
In addition, Stats SA said South Africa’s gross domestic product in the first quarter of 2022 grew by 1.9%, taking the size of the country’s economy to pre-pandemic levels.
Over the quarter, the manufacturing sector was the economy’s key performer, with an increase in the production of petroleum and chemicals, food and beverages, and metals and machinery.
Gungubele said the moderate gains showed that the country’s economy remained “robust”, and that interventions such as the Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan “are gaining momentum.”
Cabinet called on all South Africans to support local businesses and industries by buying local products and services, he said.
NM/jn/APA