O SectorPrimary corresponds to the field of economic activities related to the production of raw materials, which are also called "products primary" because they are, in general, resources cultivated or extracted from nature and that, later, are consumed or transformed into goods. The activities belonging to the Primary Sector are agriculture, livestock and plant, animal and mineral extraction.
The concept of Primary Sector is affiliated with a theoretical classification that segments the economy into three sectors, of which the secondary corresponds to industrial activity and the tertiary, to commerce and services. Such a concept is widely used by socio-spatial and economic research institutes to better understand and analyze the performance of human activities, such as the studies carried out by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), by the Institute for Applied Economic Research (Ipea) and even by the United Nations (UN).
The Primary Sector receives this name because, in addition to being the field that precedes the others and for providing the raw materials for they, was the first to be constituted in the history of mankind, forming the bases for the constitution of the first civilizations. From the social and structural transformations, societies developed techniques and forms of action characteristic of the secondary and tertiary sectors.
With the successive changes in the characteristics and use of techniques, which were provided by industrial revolutions, the Primary Sector of the economy underwent profound changes. Initially, activities such as farming and mining employed a large number of workers, in addition to having a lower availability of technology in their instrumentation. Later, especially after the Third Industrial Revolution, more and more machinery and new forms were introduced in these areas, increasing production and expanding the use of soils.
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The field mechanization process expanded production and reduced employment
On the other hand, this dynamic reduced the offer of jobs thanks to the replacement of man by machine, displacing the largest part of the workforce to the tertiary sector and, consequently, to the cities, in a type of migration that became known like rural exodus. With that, the participation of the Primary Sector in the economy and in the generation of jobs dropped significantly, although productions continued to increase, mainly in developed and emerging countries.
There are some analyzes that no longer consider the Primary Sector involving mechanized agricultural activities, especially the latifundios, linking these to the secondary sector, since such productions are more similar to industries (or agro-industries). It is worth remembering that official bodies do not consider this premise.
Despite the lower employability compared to previous times, the Primary Sector remains of fundamental importance for societies, as it is there that the natural resources used both for consumption and for the manufacture of goods are produced or extracted. industrialized.
By Rodolfo Alves Pena
Graduated in Geography
Would you like to reference this text in a school or academic work? Look:
PENA, Rodolfo F. Alves. "Primary sector"; Brazil School. Available in: https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/economia/setor-primario.htm. Accessed on June 27, 2021.
