The role of the South African defence industry (SADI) in the national economy was recently unerscored by Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Parks Tau in a keynote address he delivered at the start of the recent Defence Industry Lekgotla, held at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research’s International Convention Centre, in Pretoria, from July 20 to 22.
“South Africa’s defence industry is not a niche sector standing apart from our industrialisation programme,” he highlighted. “It is one of its most advanced expressions. It sits at the frontier of manufacturing precision, systems engineering and technology sovereignty.”
Despite difficulties, the SADI retained capabilities in the air, land, sea, space and cyber domains. These capabilities ranged from Level 2 (component manufacturing) to Level 5 (producing integrated systems). The industry was now composed of more than 600 companies, of which more than 250 had a major defence focus, and more than 350 supplied components and services into the defence value chain.
The country had been ranked (by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute) twenty-first in the world in terms of major conventional arms exports, from 2018 to 2023. Local industry associations estimated that the SADI exported to more than 115 countries, of which more than 40 were in Africa.
