Primary sector of the economy

Any industry that is engaged in the extraction and production of raw materials, including farming, logging, hunting, fishing and mining, is considered to be part of the primary sector of the economy.

When compared to developed nations, the primary sector tends to account for a bigger proportion of GDP in emerging countries. Examples are Sub-Saharan Africa, where agriculture, forestry, and fisheries accounted for more than 15 percent of GDP in 2018, and North America, where they accounted for less than 1 percent of GDP.

Comparing hand-picking and -planting in impoverished nations with technical advancement in affluent countries, the primary sector has grown more technologically sophisticated, allowing, for example, the automation of farming. For example, in the corn belt of the United States, combine harvesters pick the corn while sprayers spray large amounts of insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides, resulting in a higher yield than would be possible using less capital-intensive techniques. In other words, more developed economies may invest additional capital in primary means of production. Because of technical advancements and investment, the primary sector may employ a smaller workforce. As a result, industrialised nations tend to have a lower proportion of their workforce engaged in primary activities, with a larger proportion engaged in secondary and tertiary activities.