OWN CORRESPONDENT, Johannesburg | Monday 3.30pm.
A RECENT survey shows that South Africa ranks third in the South African Development Community, as far as income per capita is concerned.
The statistics released by international economics consultancy Wefa Southern Africa, said that despite the country being the economic powerhouse of SADC, people on average earn more in both the Seychelles and Mauritius.
Seychelles had an annual per capita income of $7,14 in 1997, more than double that of South Africa’s figure of $3,45. This is depsite the fact that Seychelles has the smallest economy in SADC; but is helped by the fact that it has a population of only 80000. Mauritius had a per capita income of $3,82.
While containing more than 28% of the total SADC population, the Democratic Republic of Congo contributes just over 3% to its total economic output. It had a per capita income of just $1,27, while Mozambique’s was slightly higher at $1,40.
The figures show that eight SADC countries have experienced a decline in average living standards, among them South Africa, Zimbabwe and Lesotho.