Social Science (087) — AI-generated practice question

Yes, I agree that the tertiary sector largely acts as a support sector.

As a support sector: Tertiary activities like transport, storage, banking, and communication directly aid primary and secondary sectors. For example, trucks transport wheat (primary) to mills, and banks provide loans to factories (secondary) to continue production.

Independent functioning: However, the tertiary sector also functions independently. Services like education, healthcare, legal services, and IT (call centres, software companies) do not directly support goods production but serve people and society on their own.

Thus, the tertiary sector is both a support sector and an independent sector generating services.

Source: Sectors of Economic Activities, Chapter 2

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• The examiner expects both sides: support role (with examples) + independent role (with examples).
• Key examples from the text: transport, storage, banking (support); teachers, doctors, IT services (independent).
• Avoid writing only one side — the question specifically asks for "ways in which the tertiary sector functions independently," so omitting it loses marks.
• Keep examples crisp; one per point is enough for 3 marks.