South Africa's Economic Structure is one of 10 topics in the Grade 11 Economics CAPS syllabus, covered across 3 lessons on Study Vault. Below are real practice questions from this topic with full worked answers.
Sample practice questions
Easy
1. Which sector of the economy consists of activities that directly extract or harvest natural resources, such as mining and agriculture?
The primary sector
The secondary sector
The tertiary sector
The public sector
Answer: The primary sector — The primary sector includes agriculture, mining, forestry and fishing -- activities that directly extract or harvest natural resources from the environment.
Easy
2. Manufacturing, construction, and electricity generation belong to which sector of the economy?
The secondary sector
The primary sector
The tertiary sector
The informal sector only
Answer: The secondary sector — The secondary sector transforms raw materials or primary-sector output into finished or semi-finished goods, including manufacturing, construction, and utilities like electricity, gas and water.
Medium
3. What term describes the sector of the economy that includes trade, transport, financial services, tourism, and government services -- activities that do not directly produce physical goods?
Answer: The tertiary sector — The tertiary sector covers service-providing activities such as trade, transport, financial services, tourism, telecommunications and government services, and has become the largest contributor to South Africa's GDP.
