South Africa at a glance

Land surface area

1 220 813 km2

Key economic sectors

Mining, transportenergy, manufacturing, tourism, and agriculture

Population

Total: 57,73 millionMale: 28,2 million (49%)Female:29,5 million (51%)

Official languages

  • English
  • isiZulu
  • isiXhosa
  • isiNdebele
  • Afrikaans
  • siSwati
  • Sepedi
  • Sesotho
  • Setswana
  • Tshivenda
  • Xitsonga
     

Currency

Rand (ZAR) – 100 cents equals one rand.

Time

GMT +2 hours

Government

Constitutional multiparty democracy, with three spheres – local, provincial and national government.. Read more about South Africa’s government.

Capitals

Pretoria (administrative)
Cape Town (legislative)
Bloemfontein (judicial)

The Constitutional Court is located in Johannesburg.

Provinces

Eastern Cape
Free State
Gauteng
KwaZulu-Natal
Limpopo
Mpumalanga
Northern Cape
North West
Western Cape
 

Transportation

Excellent roads, rail and air facilities (both domestic and international). Public transport in major cities include the Gautrain between Johannesburg and Pretoria, and the Bus Rapid Transport System in major cities.

Telecommunications

World-class infrastructure. Internet access is widely available. The five mobile (cellular) networks are Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, Telkom Mobile and Virgin Mobile.

Health

Top-quality public and private healthcare is available throughout the country. Malaria precautions are necessary in some areas.

Source:Statistics South Africa’s Mid-year Population Estimates, 2017

More information

Source: Official Guide to South Africa