SA population grows beyond the 60 million mark

Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) says the country’s population is now estimated to be 60.6 million by the end of June 2022.

Between 2002 and 2022, Stats SA revealed that the country has experienced a positive population growth year-on-year.

“A positive growth rate indicates that the population is increasing, despite the devastating impact of COVID-19 globally and within South Africa’s borders,” it said.

In addition, by 2022, the national statistical service measures of mortality indicate an improvement in life expectancy at birth, moving from 61.7 years in 2021 to 62.8 years in 2022.

The latest statistics is based on the mid-year population estimates (MPYE), which offer key indices and estimates regarding births, deaths and migratory movements in the country. It also looks into key estimates by age, sex and geographical data that assist in planning for the needs of the population.

Stats SA said the upcoming Census 2022 results will be a key source of data to update those estimates and indices.

In 2022, the MYPE indicates that about 28.07% of the population is aged younger than 15 years (17.01 million) and about 9.2% (5.59 million) is 60 years or older.

Provinces 

The provinces reflecting the highest percentage of children younger than 15 within its structure are Limpopo (33.6%) and Eastern Cape (32.7%).

Meanwhile, Gauteng still comprises the largest share of the South African population, with approximately 16.10 million people (26.6%) living in the province.

KwaZulu-Natal is the province with the second largest population, with an estimated 11.54 million people (19%) living in it.

With a population of approximately 1.31 million people (2.2%), Northern Cape remains the province with the smallest share of the South African population.

The MYPE does not include inputs from the census conducted in 2022.