Demographics of South Africa
The total population of South Africa is 57,398,421 people. People in South Africa speak the 'Afrikaans, English, Zulu, Xhosa, Tswana, Northern Sotho, Venda, Tsonga, Swati, and Ndebele languages. The linguistic diversity of South Africa is very diverse according to a fractionalization scale which for South Africa is 0.8652. The median age is approximately 25.7 years. Life expectancy in South Africa is 59. The female fertility rate in South Africa is 2.6. Around 31% of the population of South Africa are obese. The ethnic diversity is very diverse according to a fractionalization scale which for South Africa is 0.7517. To find out specifics of language, religion, age, gender distribution, and advancement of people in South Africa see the sections below, as well as visit the section concerning the education in the country.
Population
In South Africa, the population density is 43 people per square kilometer (112 per square mile). Because of this statistic, this country is considered to be sparsely populated. The total population of South Africa is 57,398,421 people. South Africa has approximately 3,142,511 foreign immigrants. Immigrants in South Africa represent 1 percent of the total number of immigrants in the world. Immigrants in South Africa represent 4.6 percent of the total number of immigrants in the world. The ethnic diversity of South Africa is very diverse according to a fractionalization scale based on ethnicity. Ethnic fractionalization (EF) deals with the number, sizes, socioeconomic distribution, and geographical location of distinct cultural groups, usually in a state or some otherwise delineated territory. Specific cultural features might refer to language, skin color, religion, ethnicity, customs and traditions, history, or other distinctive criteria, alone or in combination. Frequently, these features are used for social exclusion and the monopolization of power. The index of ethnic fractionalization in South Africa is 0.7517. This means that there is a very high number of unique ethnic groups in South Africa. EF is usually measured as 1 minus the Herfindahl concentration index of ethnolinguistic group shares, which reproduces the probability that two randomly drawn individuals from the population belong to different groups. The theoretical maximum of EF of 1 means that each person belongs to a different group. Read below for statistics of South Africa on median age and gender distribution at various ages.
Age
The median age is approximately 25.7 years. The median age for men is 25.4, while the median age for women is 26.
Gender
The sex ratio, or the number of males for each female (estimated at birth), is 1.02. It can be further divided into the following categories: sex ratio under 15 - 1; sex ratio from 15 to 64 - 1.02; sex ratio over 64 - 0.69; total sex ratio - 0.99. Total sex ratio is different from sex ratio estimated at birth. This is due to the fact that some newborns are considered in the sex ratio estimated at birth but pass away within the first weeks of their life and are not included in the total sex ratio.
Religion
The majority religion of South Africa is Christianity, the followers of which comprise 81.2% of all religious believers in the country. Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ as presented in the New Testament. Christianity is the world's largest religion, with over 2.4 billion adherents, known as Christians. Christians believe that Jesus is the Son of God and the savior of humanity whose coming as Christ or the Messiah was prophesied in the Old Testament. Besides Christianity, there are several other religions present within the country. Other religions in South Africa are Islam, folk religions. The religious diversity of South Africa is very diverse according to a fractionalization scale based on the number of religions in South Africa. The index of religious fractionalization in South Africa is 0.8603. This score means that several major religions within South Africa co-exist with one another and with some minor beliefs.
General development
South Africa is considered to be a developing nation. The developmental stage of a nation is determined by a number of factors including, but not limited to, economic prosperity, life expectancy, income equality, and quality of life. As a developing nation, South Africa may not be able to offer consistent social services to its citizens. These social services may include things like public education, reliable healthcare, and law enforcement. Citizens of developing nations may have lower life expectancies than citizens of developed nations. In South Africa, 41 in every 100 people use internet. South Africa has a Human Development Index (HDI) of 0.658. South Africa has an upper medium HDI score. This indicates that the majority of citizens will be able to attain a desirable life, though some citizens will not be able to achieve high living standards. The migration rate in South Africa is 2.42%. In South Africa, 31.3% of the population lives below the poverty line. The percentage of citizens living below the poverty line in South Africa is fairly high, but is not reason for complete concern with regard to investments. Potential financial backers should look at other economic markers, including GDP, urbanization rate, and strength of currency, before making any decisions regarding investments.
Language
People in South Africa speak the 'Afrikaans, English, Zulu, Xhosa, Tswana, Northern Sotho, Venda, Tsonga, Swati, and Ndebele languages. The linguistic diversity of South Africa is very diverse according to a fractionalization scale based on the number of unrelated languages spoken in South Africa. The index of linguistic fractionalization in South Africa is 0.8652. This means that several major languages within South Africa co-exist together. There are several additional minor languages. Unrelated languages share few characteristics of grammatical structure, vocabulary, and etymological heritage. Linguistic diversity often results in issues of social and cultural fractionalization that can impact a country’s political circumstance and public policies.