3.3 Central issues of the union of sa and the new sa  (Page 2/2)

An economic system where most of the assets (money and land) are in privately owned hands. In a communist country it would be owned by the state.

Chinese competitorship

Because China has such a large population, human labour is extremely cheap. Items such as clothing in particular, is manufactured at very low costs. These cheap articles are sold across the world at very low prices. Local manufacturers cannot compete with these prices – hence the loss of business and eventually they have to close down their factories. People lose their jobs and in the process unemployment figures soar.

Activity 1:

To understand the meaning of the word depression

[lo 2.1]

Make a tick next to the correct meaning of the word Depression :

• When there is no economic growth . . . .
• When there is a world-wide crisis . . .
• When there is a laxity in trade . . . .

A tip

• When the value of money decreases, we speak of the depreciation of a money unit.

• When we say someone suffers from depression, it means that a person is constantly feeling miserable, or not in good spirits. The person’s mood is very low. In that case someone is said to suffer from depression.

Therefore we can say that the economy is “depressed” of “down” when there is a depression.

Activity 2:

To determine what products are imported or exported

[lo 2.1]

In some cases South Africa produces enough food, to the effect that the country can also export some of it.

Tick the foodstuffs that are being imported or exported:

Assessment

Memorandum

This learning unit offers guidelines to the learners which will enable them to attempt projects and tasks on some of the following:

• affirmative action
• trade agreements with other countries in Africa and elsewhere
• the manufacturing industry in South Africa
• Import of agricultural products from other countries (meat and dairy products from Australia and South America, wheat and maize from North America, etc.)

Activity 1

• All three possibilities are correct.

The learners can do a group task on the Great Depression of 1929 and what the consequences were for the people of this country. Personal contributions of older members of the family would be invaluable.

Activity 2

• South Africa’s main agricultural products are listed in the table. When there is a surplus, export to other countries might take place, and shortages might necessitate the import of products.

The trade balance might also require imports or exports to or from certain countries. Sometimes products are imported at lower prices than what local farmers can produce. At the present moment dairy products are more expensive than the imported products.

Farmers who produce deciduous fruit, on the other hand, get higher prices for their products on the overseas market because of the favourable exchange rate at the present moment.

It can therefore be said that the products in the table are sometimes exported, and sometimes imported.