BMIT SA Vertical Industry Market Sizing and Forecast 2026

This report tracks each vertical industry by IT and telecoms spend for 2026, broken down by ‘corporate’ and ‘SME and mid-market’ customer segments, as well as their five year forecasts from 2026 to 2030.

The key components of the research, as reflected in the report’s chapter structure, are:

Number of business customers in each size category, segmented by key vertical market sector
Vertical sector spend on IT and telecoms, and how this will change in future
Overall ICT spending levels and growth trends in each service category, including forecasts to 2030
Resultant ICT revenues and forecast growth rates segmented by IT and telecoms, each broken down further by category type and ‘corporate’, ‘SME and ‘mid market’ spend
- Note: Excluded from the market revenue numbers are in-house spending on ICT salaries and spending on ICT intermediary consultants such as management consultancy firms, unless these form part of an ICT project.

Methodology

BMIT has analysed all the vertical industries by company size and by employee bracket, and their spending patterns, formulated from primary and secondary research input from:

BMIT databases and other secondary sources, including reporting of the number of VAT-paying companies, Stats SA Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) and Quarterly Employment Statistics (QES) reports
Enterprise ICT spending patterns, based on BMIT’s end user surveys and derived models
Top-down industry revenue figures tied back to BMIT in-depth reports on IT and telecoms market segments, which in turn are informed by primary research (vendor interviews) and analysis of operator reporting
Qualitative assessment of key vertical markets in South Africa, based on extensive secondary research

Analysis framework

Business ICT spend

By customer segment: Corporate and SME
IT and telecoms spending growth, per ICT product/service category
Forecast to 2030

Vertical segmentation (based on 9 SIC Codes for economic activity)

Agriculture, forestry & fishing
Mining
Manufacturing
Electricity, gas & water
Construction
Retail, wholesale & hospitality
Transport, storage & logistics
Financial and business services
Government, healthcare, education & personal services

Within each sector:

Statistical dashboard
Overview of sector and subsectors
ICT spend and forecast
Major companies
Major projects
Government policies & programmes
Trends/challenges/drivers/inhibitors
Tech trends

Notes:

Official statistics, such as GDP, labour, etc, currently are reported in terms of the Standard Classification of All Economic Activity or SIC codes, version 5, linked to international codes. The codes used are shown in Slide 6.
The SIC5 classification does not offer categories that have more recently become important sectors, such as media, and ICT, which must currently be constructed from several subsectors. Conversely, SIC combines, for example, transport, storage, logistics, postal, courier and telecommunications services into one sector.
A new set of classification codes has been prepared, SIC version 7, which allows for changes in the economic landscape, including ICT sectors. However, Statistics SA is not yet reporting according to these new codes.
In this report, BMIT uses the basic 9 categories of the SIC 5 code format in order to give an overview of the whole economy’s ICT spend, segmented by vertical sectors that correspond to official GDP, labour and other economic statistics.
BMIT offers vertical ‘deep-dive’ reports, which delve deeper into various sectors. Some of these are transversal vertical deep-dives, where we provide a landscape of those sectors which cross traditional boundaries and touch many industries. Vertical ‘deep-dives’ are customised to client’s requirements.

Introduction and methodology

Overview of the SA economy and its vertical industries

Economic outlook
Economic outlook GDP growth forecast
Economic outlook First quarter 2025
GDP vertical segmentation over time
Industry sector employment, by type of worker, 2025
Employment by industry sector, and growth, 2025
ICT-related jobs
Number of companies, by vertical sector and size (1)
Number of companies, by vertical sector and size (2)

SA vertical market by customer segment and ICT category

SA ICT market spend – Business market in 2025
Business sector ICT market by vertical sector, 2025
Projected growth for IT and telecoms by vertical sector 2025 to 2030
Business sector ICT spend growth per vertical
Business sector ICT spend per vertical, by size category, 2025
Business sector telecoms spend per vertical, by product category, Rm, 2025
Business sector telecoms spend per vertical, by category, 2025
Business sector telecoms spend growth per vertical, 2025 – 2030
Business sector IT spend per vertical, by product category, Rm, 2025
Business sector IT spend by vertical sector and IT category, 2025

Economic trends and ICT spend per vertical

AGRICULTURE

Agriculture Industry Dashboard
Agriculture subsectors
Size of the agricultural subsectors, by employment
Agriculture sector telecoms spend by category type & customer segment
Agriculture sector IT spend by category type & customer segment
Top companies in the agriculture sector
Agriculture – government initiatives
Challenges / drivers / inhibitors of agricultural sector growth
Drivers of agricultural sector growth
Land reform in South Africa – progress to date
Agriculture technology trends

MINING & QUARRYING

Mining & Quarrying Industry Dashboard
Size of the mining subsectors, by employment
Mining production
Mining subsectors
Mining sector telecoms spend by category type & customer segment
Mining sector IT spend by category type & customer segment
Top companies in the mining sector
Major projects in the mining sector
Mining challenges
Mining opportunities
Mining – the impact of the just energy transition on mining
Transnet’s Logistics Gridlock: Impact on Mineral Exports
Mining’s Uneven Recovery: PGMs, Chrome and Manganese Lead Growth

MANUFACTURING

Manufacturing Industry Dashboard
Manufacturing major subsectors – sales values
Manufacturing major subsectors – employment
Manufacturing sector telecoms spend by category type & customer segment
Manufacturing sector IT spend by category type & customer segment
Top companies in the manufacturing sector
Major projects in the manufacturing sector
NEV transition
Manufacturing trends in SA sales and production
Energy cost competitiveness and decarbonisation
Manufacturing: challenges
Manufacturing is becoming increasingly circular
Manufacturing – digitalisation shifts from pilots to execution
Renewable Energy Masterplan and the Manufacturing Industry in South Africa

ENERGY & WATER

Energy Industry Dashboard
Energy subsectors
Energy, water and gas sector telecoms spend by category type & customer segment
Energy, water and gas sector IT spend by category type & customer segment
Energy and water companies
Major projects in the energy, water and gas sector (1)
Major projects in the energy, water and gas sector (2)
South African electricity landscape
Renewable energy development for the private off-taker market
Eskom developments in 2026
Electricity generated in South Africa
Eskom’s Just Energy Transition (JET) Financing Facility
Renewable energy – large-scale investment opportunities in 2023
Private Renewable Energy Development for Private Off-take -Investment opportunity, Market size and Key Drivers
Private Renewable Energy Development for Private Off-take -Barriers
Summary of REIPPPP Bids
West Coast Green Hydrogen
SOLA Group’s Naos-1 hybrid renewable-energy project
Mulilo solar project
Water challenges in South Africa
Government initiatives in water sector

CONSTRUCTION

Construction Industry Dashboard
Construction subsectors – building and construction
Construction sector telecoms spend by category type & customer segment
Construction sector IT spend by category type & customer segment
Major companies in construction sector
Construction projects key drivers
Construction – issues and challenges
Technology developments in construction

WHOLESALE AND RETAIL TRADE

Trade Industry Dashboard
Trade subsectors (1)
Trade Subsectors (2)
Size of the trade subsectors, by employment numbers
Trade sector telecoms spend by category type & customer segment
Trade sector IT spend by category type & customer segment
Top companies in the trade sector (1)
Top companies in the trade sector (2)
Retail and wholesale challenges
Retail Trends
Carbon neutral shopping
Payment methods development

TRANSPORT, LOGISTICS & COMMUNICATIONS

Transport and Communications Industry Dashboard
Transport, Logistics & Communications subsectors
Size of the transport and communications subsectors, by employment
Transport sector telecoms spend by category type & customer segment
Transport sector IT spend by category type & customer segment
Top companies in the transport and logistics sectors
Top companies in the courier & communications sectors
Major projects in the transport and communications sector (1)
Major project in the transport and communications sector (2)
Challenges in transport
South African Post Office

FINANCE AND BUSINESS SERVICES

Financial & Business Services Industry Dashboard
Finance and business services sector telecoms spend by category type & customer segment
Finance and business services sector IT spend by category type & customer segment
Banking organisations
Finance subsectors
Banking subsectors
Large Retail Banks – Operational Summary
South Africa’s Top Banks in 2025
Major players in the banking subsector
Digital banks
Total banking sector assets
Co-operative financial sector assets
Banking sector – size of companies by geographic spread
Major players in the insurance subsector
Total insurance sector assets
Size of insurance companies
Major players in the health insurance subsector (1)
Major players in the health insurance subsector (2)
Major projects in the financial & business services sector
Four new banks entering the SA market (1)
Four new banks entering the SA market (2)
Impact of the NHI on the financial services sector in South Africa
The new Two-Pot retirement system
The financial sector: major drivers of change (1)
The financial sector: major drivers of change (2)
The role of Generative, and other AI in finance
Insurance challenges, trends and drivers of change (1)
Insurance challenges, trends and drivers of change (2)
Challenges in the financial sector

GOVERNMENT AND COMMUNITY SERVICES

Government & Personal Services Industry Dashboard (incl. public & private Health & Education; Entertainment)
Government and Community services subsectors
Education & training landscape and numbers
Broadcasting
Government and community services telecoms spend by category type & customer segment
Government and community services sector IT spend by category type & customer segment
Companies in private education and health services subsectors
Research institutions, libraries and trade unions form part of the government and community sector
Major projects in the government and community services sector
Major Government Policies and Impact Priorities – The Role of SOCs/SOEs
Trends in education
ICT in government authority chain
ECA Act – 2026 Amendment Bill (1)
ECA Act – 2026 Amendment Bill (2)
National Policy on Data and Cloud
Overall Digital Government Vision
South African Government ICT policies in 2026
Government ICT policies and regulations on Spectrum (1)
Government policies for society – 4th Industrial Revolution (2)
Government policies for society – 4th Industrial Revolution (3)
Government policies for society – Master Skills Plan
Higher education trends and drivers (1)
Higher education trends and drivers (2)
Healthcare ICT trends – personalised medicine and its risks
CRISPR-Cas9
Healthcare ICT trends (1)
Healthcare ICT trends (2)

Deliverables and format

The research and analysis is documented in a rich PowerPoint document with supporting Excel tables. The PowerPoint document contains tables and charts and is detailed enough to provide all the qualitative insights and interpretation, including market sizing and forecasting.

BMIT also offers a virtual workshop/presentation, while reserving the option to combine this topic with other published topics.

Related research

SA ICT Market Overview Sizing and Forecast
SA ICT Regional Market Sizing and Forecast
SA ICT Spend in Government Suite of Reports:

SA ICT Spend in National and Provincial Government

SA ICT Spend in Local Government

Overview of South African Stated-Owned Enterprises

Further information

For further information and details on how to subscribe to this research please contact Anita Mathews on 082 466 2327 or anita@bmit.africa

For more information on BMIT and our research and consulting services please visit www.bmit.africa

BMIT SA Vertical Industry Market Sizing and Forecast 2026