List of South African provinces by population density

Since the election of 27 April 1994, South Africa has been divided into nine provinces. They vary widely in population density, from the highly-urbanized Gauteng with about 600 people per square kilometre, to the mostly-desert Northern Cape with less than three people per square kilometre.

According to the Community Survey 2007 [note 1]
Rank Province Population (2007)[1] Area (km²)[2] Density (per km²)
1 Gauteng 10,667,578 18,178 586.8
2 KwaZulu-Natal 10,259,230 94,361 108.7
3 Mpumalanga 3,643,435 76,495 47.6
4 Limpopo 5,238,286 125,755 41.7
5 Western Cape 5,278,585 129,462 40.8
6 Eastern Cape 6,527,747 168,966 38.6
7 North West 3,056,083 104,882 29.1
8 Free State 2,773,059 129,825 21.4
9 Northern Cape 1,058,060 372,889 2.8
South Africa 48,502,063 1,220,813 39.7
According to the mid-year population estimates
Rank Province Population (2010 est.)[3] Area (km²)[2] Density (per km²)
1 Gauteng 11,191,700 18,178 615.7
2 KwaZulu-Natal 10,645,400 94,361 112.8
3 Mpumalanga 3,617,600 76,495 47.3
4 Limpopo 5,439,600 125,755 43.3
5 Western Cape 5,223,900 129,462 40.4
6 Eastern Cape 6,743,800 168,966 39.9
7 North West 3,200,900 104,882 30.5
8 Free State 2,824,500 129,825 21.8
9 Northern Cape 1,103,900 372,889 3.0
South Africa 49,991,300 1,220,813 40.9

Contents

Historical data

Since 1994 there have been two full censuses, in 1996 and 2001, as well as a "Community Survey" in 2007 which sampled approximately 2% of the population.

Province Census 1996[4]
(inhabitants/km²)		 Census 2001[4]
(inhabitants/km²)		 Community Survey 2007[1][5]
(inhabitants/km²)
Gauteng 432.0 519.5 631.6
KwaZulu-Natal 91.4 102.3 108.7
Mpumalanga 35.2 39.3 47.6
Limpopo 39.8 42.6 41.7
Western Cape 30.6 35.0 40.8
Eastern Cape 37.2 38.0 38.6
North West 28.8 31.5 30.7
Free State 20.3 20.9 21.4
Northern Cape 2.3 2.3 2.8
South Africa 33.3 36.8 39.7

Notes

  1. ^ In 2009 the Merafong City Local Municipality was transferred from North West to Gauteng. According to the Community Survey 2007 the municipality had a population of 215,865. The figures in this table have been adjusted to account for the change; those in the historical data table have not.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Community Survey, 2007 (Report). Statistics South Africa. 24 October 2007. p. 14. http://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/P0301/P0301.pdf. Retrieved 15 January 2011. 
  2. ^ a b Stats in brief, 2010. Pretoria: Statistics South Africa. 2010. p. 3. ISBN 978-0-621-39563-1. http://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/StatsInBrief/StatsInBrief2010.pdf. Retrieved 15 January 2011. 
  3. ^ Mid-year population estimates, 2010 (Report). Statistics South Africa. 20 July 2010. p. 4. http://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/P0302/P03022010.pdf. Retrieved 15 January 2011. 
  4. ^ a b Census 2001: Census in brief. Statistics South Africa. 2003. pp. 2–6. ISBN 0-621-34293-9. http://www.statssa.gov.za/census01/html/CInBrief/CIB2001.pdf. Retrieved 15 January 2011. 
  5. ^ Stats in brief, 2007. Pretoria: Statistics South Africa. 2007. p. 3. ISBN 978-0-621-37258-8. http://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/StatsInBrief/StatsInBrief2007.pdf. Retrieved 15 January 2011. 
Lists relating to the provinces of South Africa
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