Marking World Population Day, Statistics South Africa pulled three decades of census data into focus, showing the population expanded from 40.6 million in 1996 to just over 62.0 million in 2022, a pace averaging 1.7% a year. Women made up 51.5% of the population in 2022. The most striking shift is ageing: the elderly cohort grew the fastest at about 3.0% annually, while children aged 0–14 grew the slowest at 0.7%. Gauteng overtook other provinces in 2011 and now exceeds 15 million residents.
The numbers point to an economy facing slower natural growth in its future workforce and rising demand for elder care, pensions, and chronic health services. A swelling Gauteng underscores the pull of jobs and services to the urban core, intensifying pressure on housing, transport, and municipal infrastructure, while potentially widening service gaps elsewhere. A flatter child cohort may ease classroom crowding over time but raises questions about long-run labour supply and productivity.
What matters next is how these shifts feed into planning: watch for Statistics South Africa’s mid-year population estimates expected in July for updates on fertility, mortality, and migration, as well as provincial budget and infrastructure plans that respond to Gauteng’s continued in-migration and the country’s ageing profile. The balance between urban service expansion and nationwide support for older citizens will set the tone for social spending and delivery over the coming years.
For more detail, read the full announcement.