Miller Magazine Issue: 139 July 2021

97 Country Profile MILLER / july 2021 Compared to the rest of Africa, South Af- rica has by far the most modern, produc- tive and diverse agricultural economy. It is the largest exporter of agricultural products in Africa. Corn is the largest and most locally produced field crop, a dietary staple, a source of livestock feed, and an export crop. Production of grain in 2021 expected to reach a near-record high, owing to excellent weather condi- tions and large plantings. South Africa is a middle-income emerging market, with a population of 59 million people. It is one of the most advanced and diverse economies on the African continent. It has a well-developed business market and is a gateway to Sub-Saharan African markets. The economy of South Africa is the second-largest in Afri- ca, after Nigeria. South Africa’s GDP was valued at US $358 billion in 2020. South Africa has made considerable strides to im- prove the wellbeing of its citizens since its transition to democracy in the mid-1990s, but progress has stag- nated in the last decade. COVID-19 is having a major impact on the economy. The World Bank estimates that the economy contracted by 7% in 2020, as the pandemic weighed heavily on both external demand and domestic activity as the government implement- South Africa Grain Outlook