South Africa’s population surpasses 63 million, females live longer than males

South Africa’s population grew by approximately 835,513 individuals between July 2023 to July 2024.

The 1.33% increase brought the country’s population over the 63 million mark.

Statistics SA (StatsSA) revealed on Tuesday that there are more females,32 129 704, than males who account for 30 886 200 of the population.

SA’s provincial population

The latest mid-year population estimates for 2024 revealed on Tuesday show that Gauteng remains the province with the highest population at 15.9 million. While KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) ranks second place with 12.3 million people. “Together, these two provinces account for about 45% of South Africa’s total population.”

When it comes to the largest province in the country, Northern Cape has the least amount of population with people just under 1.4 million. The data reveals that 27.5% of the population in the country are under 15 years old, while 21.4% of them stay in KZN and 21.3% are in Gauteng.

Those aged 60 years and older make up approximately 9.7% of the population, while the majority of them at 24.8% are based in Gauteng.

More than half of the population, 35.8 million live in Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and Western Cape. Graph: Stats SA.

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Impact of the growing population on the economy

According to the Population Media Center, there are different impacts caused by the growing population. Some are positive, some are negative. The growing population can cause the prices of goods and services to increase, as there will be more demand. It does not end there. As more people are born in rural areas, they relocate to cities for better opportunities.

“However, cities cannot absorb the influx of people from rural areas and become overpopulated.”

An increase in population also means the growing demand for housing, food, and water. The government will be expected to meet the demands, which can lead to higher taxes being paid by the working class. If the demand is not met, it could result in a lack of quality water, unsanitary living conditions, and malnutrition.

Life Expectancy in South Africa 2002-2024. Graph: Stats SA \

Life Expectancy has increased to 66.5 years, from 54,7 years in 2002. While females’ life expectancy is at 69.2 years and males at 63.6 years.

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Population still grows after pandemics

Stats SA say the country’s population remains resilient even after the two pandemics. “The two pandemics that the country faced were the Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (Aids) pandemic and Covid-19 between 2002 and 2024.” Lives have been lost to Aids over decades, while Covid-19 claimed lives within months.

The country’s life expectancy has increased to 66 years, from 53 years in 2005. Stats SA says the reason for the increase in life expectancy is due to upgrades in access to medication, better public health facilities and socioeconomic development.

“The continuous rollout of antiretroviral therapy (ART) for those living with Aids/HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) is one of the reasons for the increase in life expectations. As the ART program has led to a reduction in Aids-related deaths from 284 249 in 2005, to 68 406 in 2024.”

The rollout of Covid-19 vaccinations and treatments has contributed to the decline in Covid-19-related deaths since July 2021.

“The decrease in the infant mortality rate (IMR) from an estimated 57 infant deaths per 1,000 live births in 2002 to 22,9 per 1,000 live births in 2024, has a direct impact on the improvement of life expectancy at birth.”

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