SA’s population now almost 56 million

THE HIV prevalence rate has risen to 12.7 percent from 11.2 percent last year. This was revealed yesterday when Statistician-General Dr Pali Lehohla released the mid-year population estimates in Pretoria.

According to last year’s estimates 6.19 million people were living with HIV in SA, compared to 7.03 million this year.

The statistics revealed that for the 15-49 year age group, an estimated 18.9 percent of the population was HIV-positive.

For 2016, Statistics SA estimated the mid-year population at 55.91 million, up from 54.96 million last year, with females totalling about 51 percent of that number.

The mid-year population growth statistics look at fertility, mortality and migration rates. “Between 2015 and 2016, the SA population grew by 1.62 percent,” Lehohla said.

“Gauteng comprises the largest share of the South African population, with 13.5 million people living in this province.”

He said the population growth was higher in the 60 and older age group compared to the 35-year age group, calling it a cocktail for disaster.

“They are uneducated, they are very likely to be in crime, they are actually in illegal situations, and they are likely to be in poverty,” Lehohla said.

Young men were more likely to die in accidents, whereas women were more likely to die due to viral diseases, he added.

Lehohla said there were more male babies born in the country, but in the general population, there were more females, due to young men dying early.

The country’s life expectancy is estimated at 62.4 overall, standing at 59.7 for males and 65.1 for females.

“Fertility has declined from about 2.65 children per woman in 2002 to 2.43 children per woman in 2016, meaning the average woman will give birth to 2.43 children in her lifetime.”

Lehohla said one of the national development goals was to increase the country’s life expectancy to 70 by 2030. “It is an achievable age.”

The infant mortality rate for 2016 is estimated at 33.7 per 1 000 live births.

Between 2011 and 2016, 95 158 white people emigrated from South Africa, whereas people from African and Asian countries were migrating here. Gauteng also had the largest number of interprovincial migrants at 1.2 million.

Lehohla said he would advise the government that the war on education had not been won and it won’t be won anytime soon. “Fixing education is a generational thing. It will take a generation to fix.”

Statistics showed that white and Indian people had the highest qualifications, whereas coloureds and Africans were lagging behind for various reasons. “Only Indians and whites have education on a consistent basis, but their numbers are few,” he said.