South Africa’s Population Sees Significant Growth from 51.7 Million to 62 Million

South Africa’s latest census reveals significant population growth, surging from 51.7 million to 62 million, an increase of 1.8%. According to SANews, this data was presented to President Cyril Ramaphosa by Statistician-General Risenga Maluleke.

Women constitute 51.5% of the population, and men comprise 48.5%. Gauteng has over 15 million residents. KwaZulu-Natal is home to 12.4 million. The Northern Cape has the smallest amount at 1.3 million.

81.4% see themselves as Black African, and 8.2% as “coloured” or mixed. The white population decreased from 8.9% to 7.3%. The numbers for Indians/Asians grew from 2.5% to 2.7%.

The median age rose from 25 to 28. Homes went from 14.4 million to 17.8 million. KwaZulu-Natal and the Northern Cape have the largest average sizes.

Also read: Census 2022: Anticipating Tomorrow’s Release of Results

The census also highlighted homelessness, with over 55,000 individuals recorded, primarily males, and more prevalent in metropolitan areas (74.1%). Gauteng remained the primary destination for internal migrants, receiving over a third of all migrants. Four provinces experienced an outflow of residents. They are Limpopo, Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, and the Free State.

The census reported 2.4 million international migrants. They are over 3% of the population, primarily Zimbabwe, mainly from the Southern African Development Community (SADC).

Water service access data revealed almost half of households experienced water interruptions for two or more consecutive days. Internet access grew substantially, with 79% of households having access, mainly via cell phones.

In education, over three million children participated in Early Childhood Development (ECD). Home agriculture participation declined in six provinces but increased in Limpopo.

The Census 2022 is the fourth count since 1996, providing valuable insights into South Africa’s changing population and housing landscape.

Also read:

S.A. Rand Weakens as Census Data Week Begins

Picture: X / PresidencyZA

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