Map of South Africa | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide1989199019911992199319941995199619971998199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 | More stats

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Background: Some of the earliest human remains in the fossil record were found in South Africa. By about A.D. 500, Bantu-speaking groups began settling into what is now northeastern South Africa, displacing Khoisan-speaking groups to the southwest. Dutch traders landed at the southern tip of present-day South Africa in 1652 and established a stopover point on the spice route between the Netherlands and the Far East, founding the city of Cape Town. After the British seized the Cape of Good Hope area in 1806, many settlers of Dutch descent -- known then as 'Boers,' or farmers, but later called Afrikaners -- trekked north to found their own republics, Transvaal and Orange Free State. In the 1820s, several decades of wars began as the Zulus expanded their territory, moving out of what is today southeastern South Africa and clashing with other indigenous peoples and the growing European settlements. The discovery of diamonds (1867) and gold (1886) spurred mass immigration, predominantly from Europe. The Zulu kingdom's territory was incorporated into the British Empire after the Anglo-Zulu War in 1879, and the Afrikaner republics were incorporated after their defeat in the Second South African War (1899-1902). Beginning in 1910, the British and the Afrikaners ruled together under the Union of South Africa, which left the British Commonwealth to become a fully self-governing republic in 1961 after a Whites-only referendum. In 1948, the National Party was voted into power and instituted a policy of apartheid -– billed as 'separate development' of the races -- which favored the White minority and suppressed the Black majority and other non-White groups. The African National Congress (ANC) led the resistance to apartheid, and many top ANC leaders such as Nelson MANDELA spent decades in South Africa's prisons. Internal protests and insurgency, as well as boycotts from some Western nations and institutions, led to the regime's eventual willingness to unban the ANC and negotiate a peaceful transition to majority rule. The first multi-racial elections in 1994 ushered in majority rule under an ANC-led government. South Africa has since struggled to address apartheid-era imbalances in wealth, housing, education, and health care under successive administrations. President Cyril RAMAPHOSA, who was reelected as the ANC leader in 2022, has made some progress in reigning in corruption.


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Location

Geographic coordinates

Map reference

Area
Total: 1,219,090 km²
Land: 1,214,470 km²
Water: 4,620 km²
Note: includes Prince Edward Islands (Marion Island and Prince Edward Island)
Comparative: slightly less than twice the size of Texas

Land boundaries
Total: 5,244 km
Border countries (6): (6) Botswana 1,969 km; Lesotho 1,106 km; Mozambique 496 km; Namibia 1,005 km; Eswatini 438 km; Zimbabwe 230 km

Coastline: 2,798 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Contiguous zone: 24 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Continental shelf: 200 nm or to edge of the continental margin

Climate: mostly semiarid; subtropical along east coast; sunny days, cool nights

Terrain: vast interior plateau rimmed by rugged hills and narrow coastal plain

Elevation
Highest point: Ntheledi (Mafadi) 3,450 m
Lowest point: Atlantic/Indian Oceans 0 m
Mean elevation: 1,034 m

Natural resources

Land use
Agricultural land: 79.4% (2023 est.)
Arable land: 9.9% (2023 est.)
Permanent crops: 0.3% (2023 est.)
Permanent pasture: 69.2% (2023 est.)
Forest: 18.7% (2023 est.)
Other: 1.9% (2023 est.)

Irrigated land: 16,700 km² (2012)

Major rivers: Orange (shared with Lesotho [s], and Namibia [m]) - 2,092 km; Limpoporivier (Limpopo) river source (shared with Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique [m]) - 1,800 km; Vaal [s] - 1,210 km
Note: [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: prolonged droughts
Volcanism: the volcano that formed Marion Island in the Prince Edward Islands is South Africa's only active volcano

Geography
Note note 1: South Africa completely surrounds Lesotho and almost completely surrounds Eswatini
Note note 2: sometimes mistaken for the southernmost point of Africa, the Cape of Good Hope is more accurately described as the southwestern-most point of the African continent; Cape Agulhas, the meeting point of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, is the southernmost point of the African continent


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Population
Total: 60,442,647 (2024 est.)
Male: 29,664,388
Female: 30,778,259
Distribution: the population is concentrated along the southern and southeastern coast, and inland around Pretoria; the eastern half of the country is more densely populated than the west, as shown in this population distribution map
Growth rate: 1.07% (2024 est.)

Nationality

Ethnic groups

Languages: isiZulu or Zulu (official) 25.3%, isiXhosa or Xhosa (official) 14.8%, Afrikaans (official) 12.2%, Sepedi or Pedi (official) 10.1%, Setswana or Tswana (official) 9.1%, English (official) 8.1%, Sesotho or Sotho (official) 7.9%, Xitsonga or Tsonga (official) 3.6%, siSwati or Swati (official) 2.8%, Tshivenda or Venda (official) 2.5%, isiNdebele or Ndebele (official) 1.6%, other (includes South African sign language (official) and Khoi or Khoisan or Khoe languages) 2% (2018 est.)
Major-language sample(s): ; Die Wereld Feite Boek, n’ onontbeerlike bron vir basiese informasie. (Afrikaans); The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information. (English)
Note: data represent language spoken most often at home

Religions: Christian 86%, ancestral, tribal, animist, or other traditional African religions 5.4%, Muslim 1.9%, other 1.5%, nothing in particular 5.2% (2015 est.)

Demographic profile

Age structure
0-14 years: 27.2% (male 8,227,690/female 8,194,392)
15-64 years: 65.3% (male 19,524,873/female 19,947,839)
65 years and over: 7.5% (2024 est.) (male 1,911,825/female 2,636,028)

Dependency ratios
Total dependency ratio: 53.1 (2024 est.)
Youth dependency ratio: 41.6 (2024 est.)
Elderly dependency ratio: 11.5 (2024 est.)
Potential support ratio: 8.7 (2024 est.)

Median age
Total: 30.4 years (2024 est.)
Male: 30.1 years
Female: 30.6 years

Population growth rate: 1.07% (2024 est.)

Birth rate: 17.7 births/1,000 population (2024 est.)

Death rate: 6.9 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.)

Net migration rate

Population distribution: the population is concentrated along the southern and southeastern coast, and inland around Pretoria; the eastern half of the country is more densely populated than the west, as shown in this population distribution map

Urbanization
Urban population: 68.8% of total population (2023)
Rate of urbanization: 1.72% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Major urban areas
Population: 10.316 million Johannesburg (includes Ekurhuleni), 4.890 million Cape Town (legislative capital), 3.228 million Durban, 2.818 million PRETORIA (administrative capital), 1.296 million Port Elizabeth, 934,000 West Rand (2023)

Environment

Air pollutants

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female
Total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2024 est.)

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio: 118 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)

Infant mortality rate
Total: 21.9 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.)
Male: 23.9 deaths/1,000 live births
Female: 20 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 71.9 years (2024 est.)
Male: 70.3 years
Female: 73.5 years

Total fertility rate: 2.27 children born/woman (2024 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source
Urban: 0.9% of population (2022 est.)
Rural: 15.5% of population (2022 est.)
Total: 5.5% of population (2022 est.)

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access
Urban: 4.1% of population (2022 est.)
Rural: 18.3% of population (2022 est.)
Total: 8.6% of population (2022 est.)

Hiv/Aids

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight: 4.9% (2017 est.)

Education expenditures

Literacy

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment
Rate (ages 15-24): 33.2% (2024 est.); 32.1% (2023 est.); 33.3% (2022 est.)
Rate (ages 15-24) note: % of labor force seeking employment


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Country name

Government type

Capital
Name: Pretoria (administrative capital); Cape Town (legislative capital); Bloemfontein (judicial capital)
Geographic coordinates: 25 42 S, 28 13 E
Time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Etymology: Pretoria was named in honor of Boer statesman Andries PRETORIUS in 1855; Cape Town's name refers to its location on the Cape of Good Hope; Bloemfontein was named after the farm on which it was built in 1846, whose name combined the Dutch words bloem (flower) and fontein (fountain)

Administrative divisions: 9 provinces; Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Northern Cape, North West, Western Cape

Dependent areas

Independence

National holiday

Constitution

Legal system: mixed system of Roman-Dutch civil law, English common law, and customary law

International law organization participation: has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

Citizenship

Suffrage

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Matamela Cyril RAMAPHOSA (since 19 June 2024)
Head of government: President Matamela Cyril RAMAPHOSA (since 19 June 2024)
Cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president
Election/appointment process: president indirectly elected by the National Assembly for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term)
Most recent election date: 29 May 2024
2024: Matamela Cyril RAMAPHOSA (ANC) elected president by the National Assembly unopposed
2019: Matamela Cyril RAMAPHOSA (ANC) elected president by the National Assembly unopposed
Expected date of next election: May 2,029
Note: the president is both chief of state and head of government

Legislative branch
Legislature name: Parliament
Legislative structure: bicameral

Judicial branch

Political parties and leaders

International organization participation

Diplomatic representation

Flag description: two equal-width horizontal bands of red (top) and blue separated by a central green band that splits into a horizontal Y; a black isosceles triangle is in the Y, with narrow yellow bands around it; the red and blue bands are bordered by narrow white stripes

National symbols

National anthem
Title: 'National Anthem of South Africa'
Lyrics/music: Enoch SONTONGA and Cornelius Jacob LANGENHOVEN/Enoch SONTONGA and Marthinus LOURENS de Villiers
History: adopted 1997; a combination of 'N'kosi Sikelel' iAfrica' (God Bless Africa) and 'Die Stem van Suid Afrika' (The Call of South Africa), which were respectively the anthems of the non-white and white communities under apartheid; official lyrics contain a mixture of Xhosa, Zulu, Sesotho, Afrikaans, and English (the five most widely spoken of South Africa's 11 official languages)

National heritage
Total World Heritage Sites: 12 (7 cultural, 4 natural, 1 mixed)
Selected World Heritage Site locales:


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Economy overview

Real gdp purchasing power parity

Real gdp growth rate: 0.6% (2024 est.); 0.7% (2023 est.); 1.9% (2022 est.)
Note: annual GDP % growth based on constant local currency

Real gdp per capita: 0.6% (2024 est.); 0.7% (2023 est.); 1.9% (2022 est.)
Note: annual GDP % growth based on constant local currency

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use
Household consumption: 64.8% (2024 est.)
Government consumption: 19.2% (2024 est.)
Investment in fixed capital: 14.5% (2024 est.)
Investment in inventories: -0.6% (2024 est.)
Exports of goods and services: 31.8% (2024 est.)
Imports of goods and services: -29.9% (2024 est.)
Note: figures may not total 100% due to rounding or gaps in data collection

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 2.9% (2024 est.)
Industry: 24.4% (2024 est.)
Services: 62.7% (2024 est.)
Note: figures may not total 100% due to non-allocated consumption not captured in sector-reported data

Agriculture products

Industries: mining (world's largest producer of platinum, gold, chromium), automobile assembly, metalworking, machinery, textiles, iron and steel, chemicals, fertilizer, foodstuffs, commercial ship repair

Industrial production growth rate: -0.4% (2024 est.)
Note: annual % change in industrial value added based on constant local currency

Labor force: 27.766 million (2024 est.)
Note: number of people ages 15 or older who are employed or seeking work

Unemployment rate: 33.2% (2024 est.); 32.1% (2023 est.); 33.3% (2022 est.)
Note: % of labor force seeking employment

Youth unemployment
Rate (ages 15-24): 33.2% (2024 est.); 32.1% (2023 est.); 33.3% (2022 est.)
Rate (ages 15-24) note: % of labor force seeking employment

Population below poverty line

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget
Revenues: $123.263 billion (2022 est.)
Expenditures: $137.593 billion (2022 est.)
Note: central government revenues (excluding grants) and expenditures converted to US dollars at average official exchange rate for year indicated

Taxes and other revenues: 26% (of GDP) (2022 est.)
Note: central government tax revenue as a % of GDP

Public debt

Revenue

Fiscal year

Inflation rate consumer prices

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares

Current account balance

Exports: $127.629 billion (2024 est.); $124.671 billion (2023 est.); $136.01 billion (2022 est.)
Note: balance of payments - exports of goods and services in current dollars
Commodities: gold, platinum, coal, cars, iron ore (2023)
Commodities note: top five export commodities based on value in dollars

Imports: $119.59 billion (2024 est.); $123.454 billion (2023 est.); $127.669 billion (2022 est.)
Note: balance of payments - imports of goods and services in current dollars
Commodities: refined petroleum, crude petroleum, gold, cars, broadcasting equipment (2023)
Commodities note: top five import commodities based on value in dollars

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates


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Electricity
Installed generating capacity: 65.989 million kW (2023 est.)
Consumption: 194.978 billion kWh (2023 est.)
Exports: 12.629 billion kWh (2023 est.)
Imports: 10.837 billion kWh (2023 est.)
Transmission/distribution losses: 22.838 billion kWh (2023 est.)
Access electrification - total population: 86.5% (2022 est.)
Access electrification - urban areas: 87.1%
Access electrification - rural areas: 93.4%
Generation sources fossil fuels: 87.3% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)
Generation sources nuclear: 3.7% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)
Generation sources solar: 2.9% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)
Generation sources wind: 5.3% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)
Generation sources hydroelectricity: 0.7% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)
Generation sources biomass and waste: 0.2% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)

Coal
Production: 239.712 million metric tons (2023 est.)
Consumption: 176.095 million metric tons (2023 est.)
Exports: 66.918 million metric tons (2023 est.)
Imports: 3.301 million metric tons (2023 est.)
Proven reserves: 9.893 billion metric tons (2023 est.)

Petroleum
Total petroleum production: 88,000 bbl/day (2023 est.)
Refined petroleum consumption: 609,000 bbl/day (2023 est.)
Crude oil estimated reserves: 15 million barrels (2021 est.)

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas
Production: 66.094 million cubic meters (2023 est.)
Consumption: 3.834 billion cubic meters (2023 est.)
Imports: 3.768 billion cubic meters (2023 est.)

Carbon dioxide emissions: 446.704 million metric tonnes of CO&sub2; (2023 est.)
From coal and metallurgical coke: 365.269 million metric tonnes of CO&sub2; (2023 est.)
From petroleum and other liquids: 73.913 million metric tonnes of CO&sub2; (2023 est.)
From consumed natural gas: 7.522 million metric tonnes of CO&sub2; (2023 est.)

Energy consumption per capita: 86.197 million Btu/person (2023 est.)


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Telephones
Fixed lines total subscriptions: 1.353 million (2023 est.)
Fixed lines subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 2 (2023 est.)
Mobile cellular total subscriptions: 108 million (2023 est.)
Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 167 (2022 est.)

Telephone system

Broadcast media

Internet
Users percent of population: 76% (2023 est.)

Broadband fixed subscriptions
Total: 2.15 million (2023 est.)
Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 3 (2023 est.)


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Military expenditures: 0.7% of GDP (2024 est.); 0.7% of GDP (2023 est.); 0.8% of GDP (2022 est.); 0.8% of GDP (2021 est.); 1.1% of GDP (2020 est.)

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 573 (2025)

Heliports: 49 (2025)

Pipelines

Railways
Total: 30,400 km (2021)
Standard gauge: 80 km (2021) 1.435-m gauge (80 km electrified)
Narrow gauge: 19,756 km (2014) 1.065-m gauge (8,271 km electrified)

Roadways

Waterways

Merchant marine
Total: 110 (2023)
By type: bulk carrier 3, general cargo 1, oil tanker 7, other 99

Ports and terminals


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Disputes international

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs