The latest mid-year population estimates show that South Africa’s population is estimated at 56,5 million people. We take a closer look at South Africa's population as well as the prevalence of HIV in the country. http://www.statssa.gov.za/?p=10263

1. Mid-year population
estimates 2017
Dr Pali Lehohla
Statistician General
@StatsSA
#Population

2. Mid-year population estimates
uses the latest available data on
fertility, mortality and migration to
estimate the population size of
South Africa.

3. 56,52 Million
South Africa’s
population, mid 2017 is
South Africa’s mid-year population has
increased by
902 200 from 2016 estimates.

4. South Africa’s population, mid 2017
56,52 Mil
51% 49%
Female Male
(28,9M) (27,6M)

5. White 8%
(4,5M)
Coloured 9%
(5M)
Indian 2%
(1,4M)
Black African 81%
45,7M
Total by Population Groups

6. 1,21 M
2.89M
3,85 M
4,44 M
5,78 M
6.5M
6,51 M
11,06 M
14.27M
0,00 M 2,00 M 4,00 M 6,00 M 8,00 M 10,00 M 12,00 M 14,00 M 16,00 M
Northern Cape
Free State
North West
Mpumalanga
Limpopo
Eastern Cape
Western Cape
KwaZulu-Natal
Gauteng
There are 14,3M people living in
Gauteng and it remains
South Africa’s most populated province.
The Northern Cape is the province
with the smallest population with 1,2M
people.
Population Rank by Province

7. WC
26%
NC
29%
EC
34%
FS
30%
NW
30%
LP
35%
MP
32%
KZN
32%
GP
25%
South Africa
30%
Limpopo and Eastern Cape
have the highest proportion
of people 15 years and
under.
Distribution of those younger than 15 years within each province

8. 0-4
40-44
5-9
10-14
15-19
20-24
25-29
30-34
35-39
Age profile of Gauteng and Eastern Cape
Eastern Cape
Gauteng
Male Female
Gauteng has more
working age
population compared
to the Eastern Cape.
Eastern Cape has a
younger aged
population with more
children

9. The rate of population growth has increased over time from 1,17 in 2002 to 1,61 in 2017
1,17
1,61
-1,50
-1,00
-0,50
0,00
0,50
1,00
1,50
2,00
2,50
3,00
3,50
2002/3 2004/5 2006/7 2008/9 2010/11 2012/13 2014/15 2016/17
Growth Rate
Total Growth Rate

10. -0,85
1,56
-1,50
-0,50
0,50
1,50
2,50
3,50
2002/3
2004/5
2006/7
2008/9
2010/11
2012/13
2014/15
2016/17
Declining population growth rates among young people (15-34) in
conjunction with increasing growth rates among elderly aged 60+ indicates
that South Africa's population is Ageing.
Growth Rate
Elderly 60+
2,48
0,18
2002/3
2004/5
2006/7
2008/9
2010/11
2012/13
2014/15
2016/17
02/03 16/17 02/03 16/17 02/03 16/17
Due to the impact of HIV and AIDS, there was negative growth among children
under 15, but with the introduction of PMTCT and ART programs there was a
reverse in the growth rate among children from negative to positive.
Youth 15-34Children 0-14

11. Fertility
(births)

12. On average, a
woman will
give birth to
children in
her lifetime
Provided that current fertility
behavior prevails
2,41

13. 21,7
24,8
21,4
2,5
2,46
2,73 2,72
2,41
1
1,2
1,4
1,6
1,8
2
2,2
2,4
2,6
2,8
3
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Fertility
Total Fertility RateCrude Birth Rate
Link to demographic dividend: As the rate at which births occur
declines, the young dependent population grows smaller in
relation to the working-age population. With more workers and
fewer young people to support, a country will have a window of
opportunity for accelerated economic growth.

14. 2.7
2,4
Fertility has declined from an average of
2,73 children per woman in 2007 to 2,41
children per woman in 2017

15. 0
0,5
1
1,5
2
2,5
3
3,5
LP EC NW MP NC KZN FS WC GP
National average of children born per female in 2017
GP and WC
experience a TFR
lower than that of
the national average
of 2.41
Fertility Rates
Provincial Fertility Rates

16. Mortality
(deaths)

17. Life expectancy of South Africans in 2017
64years(2017)
Life expectancy has increased
by
approximately 2 years
between 2012 and 2017
NDP target:
70 years by
2030

18. Life expectancy of South Africans in 2017
61,2 years
for males
66,7 years
for females

19. National Development Priorities:
Tracking and achieving
progress in demographics

20. 52,9 52,3
61,2
56,6
54,7
66,7
40,0
45,0
50,0
55,0
60,0
65,0
70,0
02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17
The decline in Life Expectancy
between 2002 and 2006 can be
attributed to the impact of HIV
and AIDS.
The gains in life expectancy is
accredited to access to ART
Life Expectancy
People are living longer
Life Expectancy
Years

21. 72
70
66
65
65
64
64
64
62
67
64
61
61
60
58
58
58
56
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
WC
GP
NC
LP
MP
NW
EC
KZN
FS
Life expectancy by province
Average of 5 year gap in
life expectancy between
males and females
Years

22. HIV population (in millions)Prevalence of persons living with HIV
17,65 17,98
20,23 21,17
7,31
4,64
0,00
5,00
10,00
15,00
20,00
25,00
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
Adults 15-49 Women 15-49 Youth
0
1 000 000
2 000 000
3 000 000
4 000 000
5 000 000
6 000 000
7 000 000
8 000 000
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
Persons living with HIV
The decline in prevalence among
youth is an indication of decline in the
rate of new infections
7.06 million people are living with HIV.
This represents 13 in every 100 people
Over time HIV prevalence
amongst adults age 15-49 is
increasing whilst declining
among youth 15-24
Improved access and uptake of
ARVs in SA has enabled HIV
positive people to live longer
and healthier lives leading to
an increase in the HIV
population over time.

23. Approximately one-fifth of South African
women in their reproductive ages are
HIV positive. HIV prevalence among the
youth aged 15-24 has declined over time
from 7,3% in 2002 to 4,6 in 2017.

24. Rates
13,4 9,0
48,1
32,8
71,3
42,4
0,0
10,0
20,0
30,0
40,0
50,0
60,0
70,0
80,0
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Mortality
Crude Death Rate
Infant Mortality Rate
The crude death rate is down from 13,4 deaths
per 1 000 people in 2002 to 9,0 deaths per 1 000
people in 2017
Infant mortality has declined from 48,1 infant
deaths per 1 000 live births in 2002 to 32,8
infant deaths per 1 000 live births in 2017
Under 5 Mortality Rate

25. Migration

26. African
1 072 557
Asia
59 432
White
-112 740
Immigration
contributes to the
growth of the South
African population
International migration 2016-2021

27. Over the last 5 year period 5 out of every 10
international migrant has settled in GP

28. Gauteng, Western Cape, Mpumalanga and the
North West province are net receivers of
in-migrants
Limpopo and the Eastern Cape experienced
the largest outflow
Selected Provincial Out Migration Flows

29. Western Cape Gauteng Eastern Cape Limpopo
Gauteng is the most preferred destination for
international and
inter-provincial migrants in South Africa
Whereas Eastern Cape and Limpopo
experienced the biggest outflow related to
internal migration
Selected Provincial In Migration Flows

30. Thank you
The Mid-year population estimates,
2017 is also available to download
from the Stats SA app