Trends in and determinants of South African maize exports in the post-deregulation era

Orientation: Agriculture is key to South Africa’s economy, but exports face high transport costs, logistical bottlenecks, and infrastructure constraints, limiting competitiveness.

Research purpose: To examine how transport costs and logistical shortcomings affect South African maize exports.

Motivation: Few studies have explored the link between logistics and agricultural export competitiveness in Africa; maize was chosen due to its export potential.

Research approach: Global maize export trends and South Africa’s logistics performance are analysed. Domestic rail and road transport trends, costs, and regression analysis of export determinants are examined.

Main findings: Rising domestic transport costs significantly reduce maize export volumes, while international prices boost exports. Harbour and border exports show different patterns.

Implications: Highlights the critical role of logistics efficiency in export competitiveness.

Contribution: Provides empirical evidence to guide policy and further research on enhancing South Africa’s agricultural export competitiveness.

Keywords: transport infrastructure; logistics; agriculture; maize; exports; competitiveness