South Africa’s agricultural sector has significant potential to support economic growth, employment and exports. However, unlocking this potential will require the industry to address a complex mix of productivity, infrastructure, market access, climate and profitability challenges.
Collaboration across the agricultural value chain, supported by the strategic use of technology, could help businesses improve productivity, strengthen resilience and achieve sustainable long-term growth.
These were key messages from the sixth Datacentrix Agri Indaba, which brought together agricultural and technology leaders, industry experts and customers to discuss the economic outlook for South African agriculture and the role of digital transformation in supporting the sector.
Held under the theme ‘Cultivating a Smarter, Connected, Resilient Agri Future’, the 2026 event explored how data, artificial intelligence (AI), connectivity, automation and cybersecurity can help agricultural businesses navigate changing operating conditions.
Agriculture Faces Mixed Fortunes
Wandile Sihlobo, South Africa’s Presidential Envoy on Agriculture and Land and Chief Economist of the Agricultural Business Chamber of South Africa (Agbiz), described the agricultural outlook as one of “mixed fortunes”.
Favourable summer rainfall has supported production conditions for field crops, fruit and vegetables during the 2025/26 season. Strong production volumes have also improved sentiment across parts of the sector. However, livestock producers continue to contend with foot-and-mouth disease, while pork producers face the lingering effects of African swine fever.
Other challenges include rising input costs, weak profitability and declining plantings in the wheat sector. Port bottlenecks continue to affect the fruit industry, while geopolitical developments are contributing to higher shipping costs and further pressure on producers.
Despite these challenges, Sihlobo identified agriculture as a sector with considerable potential to contribute more significantly to South Africa’s economic growth. He estimated that the sector could grow by approximately 8% in 2026, although performance is expected to vary across subsectors.
Agriculture’s Growing Economic Contribution
Agriculture’s economic importance extends beyond primary production. Sihlobo noted that approximately 944,000 people were employed in primary agriculture in the second quarter of 2026, while an estimated 1.3 million to 1.4 million people work across the broader agricultural sector and related businesses.
The sector is also a major contributor to South Africa’s export economy. Agricultural exports increased by approximately 10% year on year in the second quarter of 2026, with first-half exports reaching US$7.8 billion. This continues a longer-term growth trend, with exports rising from just over US$2 billion in the early 2000s to a record US$15.1 billion in 2025.
Approximately half of South Africa’s agricultural production by value is exported, making efficient logistics and reliable access to international markets essential to sustained growth.
However, strong export performance does not automatically translate into higher profitability for producers. Logistics constraints increase costs, while tariffs, regulatory requirements and limited trade agreements can undermine the competitiveness of South African products in international markets.
Sihlobo emphasised that increasing production alone is not enough. Producers must also move goods efficiently through the supply chain and access markets where their products can be sold competitively.
Building Resilience Against Climate Risks
Although the near-term outlook includes positive indicators, Sihlobo warned that the agricultural sector could face more difficult conditions in 2027.
The 2026/27 season presents potential risks associated with El Niño and drier weather conditions. With only around 20% of South Africa’s food crops under irrigation, rainfall remains a critical factor in agricultural performance.
Depending on the severity of El Niño, Sihlobo projected that agricultural output could contract by approximately 6% in 2027, following anticipated growth in 2026.
The effects could extend beyond farm production. Food-price inflation could rise to between 5% and 6%, while higher input costs and drought conditions could place additional pressure on agricultural employment and farm profitability.
These risks highlight the importance of building resilience before conditions deteriorate. Better access to information, reliable connectivity and data-driven decision-making can help agricultural businesses anticipate challenges, manage resources and respond more effectively to changing conditions.
Technology Must Deliver Practical Business Value
According to Sihlobo, collaboration and the purposeful application of technology could help agriculture realise its potential to support economic growth, transformation and employment.
Technology adoption must, however, be guided by practical business needs rather than treated as an objective in itself. While larger farming operations may have the resources to implement digital solutions independently, cooperatives and other industry structures could help smaller businesses access technology and expertise collectively.
This creates opportunities for agricultural businesses, industry bodies and technology providers to collaborate on solutions that deliver measurable improvements in productivity, decision-making and operational resilience.
“Technology has a role to play, but the starting point must be the business challenge,” said Ahmed Mahomed, Group CEO of Datacentrix.
“Agriculture operates in an environment where productivity, logistics, market access, weather conditions and profitability are closely linked. Technology should therefore be applied where it can provide meaningful insight, improve decision-making, support operational continuity or address a specific business constraint.”
For Datacentrix, this means taking a technology-agnostic approach, working with customers to understand their operational and strategic requirements before identifying the appropriate combination of technology, skills and expertise.
The discussions also highlighted the growing importance of data sovereignty, local infrastructure and contingency planning as organisations navigate geopolitical uncertainty and rapidly evolving technology markets.
As agricultural businesses become more dependent on connected systems, data and digital services, decisions about where critical data is stored, how it is managed and which infrastructure supports it are increasingly important. Access to appropriate local skills and expertise also forms part of a broader strategy for business continuity and resilience.
Collaboration as a Catalyst for Growth
The sixth Datacentrix Agri Indaba reinforced the need for South Africa’s agricultural sector to strengthen its international competitiveness, address infrastructure and logistics constraints, manage climate and disease risks, and create opportunities for employment and inclusive growth.
“South Africa’s agricultural sector has demonstrated its capacity to grow, create employment and compete in international markets, but there are a number of limitations that need to be addressed,” said Mahomed.
“Collaboration will be important, as will the ability to make informed technology choices that support productivity and resilience. The opportunity is not simply to digitalise agriculture, but to use technology purposefully to help address the challenges facing the sector.”
The Datacentrix Agri Indaba 2026 was supported by technology partners Cohesity, Comsol Networks, Fortinet (Exclusive Networks), HP Inc., HPE Networking, Inferrix, Kaspersky, ManageEngine (ITR Technology), Nutanix, Hikvision (Pinnacle) and Utimaco.
