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Do not fill this in! ==Demographics== {{Main|Demographics of South Africa}} [[File:South Africa 2011 population density map (hex cells).svg|thumb|Map of population density in South Africa{{Clear}} {{legend-col |{{legend|#ffffcc|<1 /km<sup>2</sup>}} |{{legend|#ffeda0|1β3 /km<sup>2</sup>}} |{{legend|#fed976|3β10 /km<sup>2</sup>}} |{{legend|#feb24c|10β30 /km<sup>2</sup>}} |{{legend|#fd8d3c|30β100 /km<sup>2</sup>}} |{{legend|#fc4e2a|100β300 /km<sup>2</sup>}} |{{legend|#e31a1c|300β1000 /km<sup>2</sup>}} |{{legend|#bc0026|1000β3000 /km<sup>2</sup>}} |{{legend|#800026|>3000 /km<sup>2</sup>}}}} ]] South Africa is a nation of about 62 million (as of 2022) people of diverse origins, cultures, languages, and religions.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.gov.za/sites/default/files/P03014_Census_2022_Statistical_Release.pdf|title=2022 Census Statistical Release|date=15 October 2023|website=[[Statistics South Africa]]|access-date=15 October 2023|archive-date=15 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231015192129/https://www.gov.za/sites/default/files/P03014_Census_2022_Statistical_Release.pdf}}{{dead link|date=December 2023}}</ref> The last [[South African National Census of 2022|census]] was held in 2022, with estimates produced on an annual basis. According to the United Nations' ''[[World Population Prospects]]'', South Africa's total population was 55.3 million in 2015, compared to only 13.6 million in 1950.<ref>{{Cite web|title=World Population Prospects β Population Division β United Nations|url=https://population.un.org/wpp/|website=population.un.org |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200617000901/https://population.un.org/wpp/ |archive-date=17 June 2020 }}</ref> South Africa is home to an estimated five million [[Illegal immigration|illegal immigrants]], including some three million Zimbabweans.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/05/23/africa/23saf.php|title=Anti-immigrant violence spreads in South Africa, with attacks reported in Cape Town β The New York Times|website=[[International Herald Tribune]]|date=23 May 2008|access-date=30 October 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090221002431/http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/05/23/africa/23saf.php|archive-date=21 February 2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.sky.com/story/573086/escape-from-mugabe-zimbabwes-exodus|title=Escape From Mugabe: Zimbabwe's Exodus|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160124000311/http://news.sky.com/story/573086/escape-from-mugabe-zimbabwes-exodus|archive-date=24 January 2016 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fin24.com/articles/default/display_article.aspx?ArticleId=1518-25_2035097|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090214052122/http://www.fin24.com/articles/default/display_article.aspx?ArticleId=1518-25_2035097|archive-date=14 February 2009|title=More illegals set to flood SA|publisher=Fin24|access-date=30 October 2011|url-status=dead }}</ref> A series of [[Xenophobia in South Africa|anti-immigrant riots]] occurred beginning in May 2008.<ref name="bbc">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7396868.stm|title=South African mob kills migrants|publisher=BBC|access-date=19 May 2008|date=12 May 2008|archive-date=13 March 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170313001302/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7396868.stm|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|first=Barry|last=Bearak|title=Immigrants Fleeing Fury of South African Mobs|date=23 May 2008|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/23/world/africa/23safrica.html?_r=1&ref=africa&oref=slogin|access-date=5 August 2008|archive-date=1 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110501055725/http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/23/world/africa/23safrica.html?_r=1&ref=africa&oref=slogin|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Statistics South Africa]] asks people to describe themselves in the census in terms of five racial population groups.<ref>{{cite news|last=Lehohla |first=Pali |title=Debate over race and censuses not peculiar to SA|url=http://www.statssa.gov.za/news_archive/05may2005_1.asp|date=5 May 2005|newspaper=Business Report|access-date=25 August 2013|quote=Others pointed out that the repeal of the Population Registration Act in 1991 removed any legal basis for specifying 'race'. The Identification Act of 1997 makes no mention of race. On the other hand, the Employment Equity Act speaks of 'designated groups' being 'black people, women and people with disabilities'. The Act defines 'black' as referring to 'Africans, coloureds and Indians'. Apartheid and the racial identification which underpinned it explicitly linked race with differential access to resources and power. If the post-apartheid order was committed to remedying this, race would have to be included in surveys and censuses, so that progress in eradicating the consequences of apartheid could be measured and monitored. This was the reasoning that led to a 'self-identifying' question about 'race' or 'population group' in both the 1996 and 2001 population censuses, and in Statistics SA's household survey programme.|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070814143522/http://www.statssa.gov.za/news_archive/05may2005_1.asp|archive-date=14 August 2007 }}</ref> The 2022 census figures for these groups were: [[Bantu peoples of South Africa|Black African]] at 81%, [[Cape Coloureds|Coloured]] at 8.2%, [[White South Africans|White]] at 7.3%, [[Indian South Africans|Indian or Asian]] at 2.7%, and Other/Unspecified at 0.5%.<ref name="auto1">https://www.gov.za/sites/default/files/P03014_Census_2022_Statistical_Release.pdf</ref> The first census in 1911 showed that whites made up 22% of the population; this had declined to 16% by 1980.<ref>{{Cite book| author = ((Study Commission on U.S. Policy toward Southern Africa (U.S.)))| title = South Africa: time running out: the report of the Study Commission on U.S. Policy Toward Southern Africa| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=sq43lnbklEUC&pg=PA42| publisher = University of California Press| year = 1981| page = 42| isbn = 978-0-520-04547-7| access-date = 14 October 2015| archive-date = 24 January 2016| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160124000311/https://books.google.com/books?id=sq43lnbklEUC&pg=PA42| url-status = live }}</ref> South Africa hosts a sizeable refugee and asylum seeker population. According to the ''World Refugee Survey 2008'', published by the [[U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants]], this population numbered approximately 144,700 in 2007.<ref name="World Refugee Survey 2008" /> Groups of refugees and asylum seekers numbering over 10,000 included people from Zimbabwe (48,400), the DRC (24,800), and Somalia (12,900).<ref name="World Refugee Survey 2008" /> These populations mainly lived in Johannesburg, Pretoria, [[Durban]], Cape Town, and [[Port Elizabeth]].<ref name="World Refugee Survey 2008">{{cite news|title=World Refugee Survey 2008|publisher=U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants|date=19 June 2008|url=http://www.refugees.org/resources/refugee-warehousing/archived-world-refugee-surveys/2008-world-refugee-survey.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141019224639/http://www.refugees.org/resources/refugee-warehousing/archived-world-refugee-surveys/2008-world-refugee-survey.html|archive-date=19 October 2014 }}</ref> === Languages === {{Main|Languages of South Africa}} [[File:South Africa 2011 dominant language map (hex cells).svg|right|thumb|{{Collapsible list | title = Map showing the dominant [[Languages of South Africa|South African languages]] by area|{{legend|#80b1d3|[[Zulu language|Zulu]] (22.7%)}}|{{legend|#fb8072|[[Xhosa language|Xhosa]] (16.0%)}}|{{legend|#8dd3c7|β [[Afrikaans]] (13.5%)}}|{{legend|#ffffb3|[[South African English|English]] (9.6%)}}|{{legend|#fdb462|[[Pedi language|Pedi]] (9.1%)}}|{{legend|#fccde5|[[Tswana language|Tswana]] (8.0%)}}|{{legend|#b3de69|[[Sotho language|Southern Sotho]] (7.6%)}}|{{legend|#ffed6f|[[Tsonga language|Tsonga]] (4.5%)}}|{{legend|#bc80bd|[[Swazi language|Swazi]] (2.5%)}}|{{legend|#ccebc5|[[Venda language|Venda]] (2.4%)}}|{{legend|#bebada|[[Southern Ndebele language|Southern Ndebele]] (2.1%)}}|{{legend|#d0d0d0|None dominant}}|{{legend|#ffffff|Areas of little or no population}} }}]] South Africa has 12 official languages:<ref name="parliament.gov.za"/> [[Zulu language|Zulu]], [[Xhosa language|Xhosa]], [[Afrikaans]], [[South African English|English]], [[Northern Sotho|Pedi]],<ref>{{Cite web|title=Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 β Chapter 1: Founding Provisions {{!}} South African Government|url=https://www.gov.za/documents/constitution/chapter-1-founding-provisions#5|access-date=26 July 2020|website=www.gov.za|archive-date=18 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190518042037/https://www.gov.za/documents/constitution/chapter-1-founding-provisions#5|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Tswana language|Tswana]], [[Sotho language|Southern Sotho]], [[Tsonga language|Tsonga]], [[Swazi language|Swazi]], [[Venda language|Venda]], and [[Southern Ndebele language|Southern Ndebele]] (in order of first language speakers), as well as South African Sign Language which was recognised as an official language in 2023.<ref name="parliament.gov.za"/>In this regard it is fourth only to [[Bolivia]], [[Official languages of India|India]], and [[Zimbabwe]] in number. While all the languages are formally equal, some languages are spoken more than others. According to the 2022 census, the three most spoken first languages are Zulu (24.4%), Xhosa (16.6%), and Afrikaans (10.6%).<ref name="auto1"/> Although English is recognised as the language of commerce and science, it is only the fifth most common home language, that of only 8.7% of South Africans in 2022; nevertheless, it has become the de facto [[lingua franca]] of the nation.<ref name="auto1"/> Estimates based on the 1991 census suggest just under half of South Africans could speak English.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.brandsouthafrica.com/south-africa-fast-facts/geography-facts/languages|title=South Africa's languages|date=6 November 2007|access-date=21 February 2020|archive-date=26 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190626173847/https://www.brandsouthafrica.com/south-africa-fast-facts/geography-facts/languages|url-status=live}}</ref> It is the second most commonly spoken language outside of the household, after Zulu.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://businesstech.co.za/news/business/319760/these-are-the-most-spoken-languages-in-south-africa-in-2019/|title=These are the most-spoken languages in South Africa in 2019|author=Staff Writer|website=businesstech.co.za|access-date=21 February 2020|archive-date=21 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200221184630/https://businesstech.co.za/news/business/319760/these-are-the-most-spoken-languages-in-south-africa-in-2019/|url-status=live}}</ref> Other languages are spoken, or were widely used previously, including [[Fanagalo language|Fanagalo]], [[Khoe language|Khoe]], [[Lobedu language|Lobedu]], [[Nama language|Nama]], [[Northern Ndebele language|Northern Ndebele]], and [[Phuthi language|Phuthi]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.southafrica.info/about/people/language.htm|title=The languages of South Africa|publisher=SouthAfrica.info|date=4 February 1997|access-date=7 November 2010|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110304001836/http://www.southafrica.info/about/people/language.htm|archive-date=4 March 2011}}</ref> Many of the unofficial [[Khoisan languages|languages of the San and Khoekhoe]] peoples contain regional dialects stretching northwards into Namibia and Botswana, and elsewhere. These people, who are a physically distinct population from the Bantu people who make up most of the Black Africans in South Africa, have their own cultural identity based on their [[hunter-gatherer]] societies. They have been marginalised, and the remainder of their languages are in danger of becoming [[Extinct language|extinct]]. White South Africans may also speak European languages, including Italian, Portuguese (also spoken by black Angolans and Mozambicans), Dutch, German, and Greek, while some Indian South Africans and more recent migrants from South Asia speak [[Languages of India|Indian languages]], such as Gujarati, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, and Urdu. French is spoken by migrants from [[African French|Francophone Africa]]. === Religion === {{Main|Religion in South Africa}} {{bar box |title=Religion in South Africa (2010)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.globalreligiousfutures.org/countries/south-africa#/?affiliations_religion_id=11&affiliations_year=2010®ion_name=All+Countries&restrictions_year=2015|title=Religions in South Africa β PEW-GRF|website=www.globalreligiousfutures.org|access-date=9 December 2017|archive-date=10 July 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180710102511/http://globalreligiousfutures.org/countries/south-africa#/?affiliations_religion_id=11&affiliations_year=2010®ion_name=All+Countries&restrictions_year=2015|url-status=live}}</ref> |titlebar= #Fcd116 |left1=religion |right1=percent |float=right |bars= {{bar percent|[[Protestantism]]|#B57EDC|73.2}} {{bar percent|[[Irreligion|No religion]]|black|14.9}} {{bar percent|[[Catholic Church in South Africa|Catholicism]]|darkblue|7.4}} {{bar percent|[[Islam]]|green|1.7}} {{bar percent|[[Hinduism]]|darkorange|1.1}} {{bar percent|Other faith|silver|1.7}} }} According to the 2001 census, Christians accounted for 79.8% of the population, with a majority of them being members of various [[Protestantism|Protestant]] [[Christian denomination|denominations]] (broadly defined to include [[Syncretism|syncretic]] [[African-initiated church]]es) and a minority of [[Catholic Church|Roman Catholics]] and other Christians. Christian category includes [[Zion Christian Church|Zion Christian]] (11.1%), [[Pentecostalism|Pentecostal]] ([[Charismatic movement|Charismatic]]) (8.2%), [[Catholic Church in South Africa|Roman Catholic]] (7.1%), [[Methodist Church of Southern Africa|Methodist]] (6.8%), [[Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa (NGK)|Dutch Reformed]] (6.7%), and [[Anglican Church of Southern Africa|Anglican]] (3.8%). Members of remaining Christian churches accounted for another 36% of the population. [[Islam in South Africa|Muslims]] accounted for 1.5% of the population, [[Hinduism in South Africa|Hindus]] 1.2%,<ref name="state.gov" /> [[traditional African religions]] 0.3% and Judaism 0.2%. 15.1% had no religious affiliation, 0.6% were "other" and 1.4% were "unspecified."<ref name=factbook /><ref name="state.gov">{{cite web|url=https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2005/51496.htm|title=South Africa β Section I. Religious Demography|publisher=U.S. Department of State|access-date=15 July 2006|archive-date=14 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200614133513/https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2005/51496.htm|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=South Africa |url=https://www.state.gov/reports/2022-report-on-international-religious-freedom/south-africa/ |access-date=2023-12-07 |website=United States Department of State |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|first1=Wessel|last1=Bentley|author2=Dion Angus Forster|title=Methodism in Southern Africa: A Celebration of Wesleyan Mission|year=2008|publisher=AcadSA|isbn=978-1-920212-29-2|pages=97β98|chapter=God's mission in our context, healing and transforming responses}}</ref> African-initiated churches formed the largest of the Christian groups. It was believed that many of the persons who claimed no affiliation with any organised religion adhered to a traditional African religion. There are an estimated 200,000 [[Traditional healers of Southern Africa|traditional healers]], and up to 60% of South Africans consult these healers,<ref>{{cite book|author=van Wyk, Ben-Erik|author2=van Oudtshoorn, Gericke N|year=1999|title=Medicinal Plants of South Africa|location=Pretoria|publisher=Briza Publications|isbn=978-1-875093-37-3|page=10}}</ref> generally called {{lang|bnt|sangoma}} ('diviner') or {{lang|bnt|inyanga}} ('herbalist'). These healers use a combination of [[Veneration of the dead|ancestral spiritual beliefs]] and a belief in the spiritual and medicinal properties of local fauna, flora, and funga commonly known as [[Traditional African medicine|{{lang|bnt|muti|nocat=true}}]] ('medicine'), to facilitate healing in clients. Many peoples have syncretic religious practices combining Christian and indigenous influences.<ref name="DoS">{{cite web|url=https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2006/71325.htm|title=South Africa|publisher=State.gov|date=15 September 2006|access-date=30 October 2011|archive-date=14 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200614154706/https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2006/71325.htm|url-status=live }}</ref> South African Muslims comprise mainly Coloureds and Indians. They have been joined by black or white South African converts as well as those from other parts of Africa.<ref name=csmonitor /> South African Muslims describe their faith as the fastest-growing religion of conversion in the country, with the number of black Muslims growing sixfold, from 12,000 in 1991 to 74,700 in 2004.<ref name=csmonitor>{{cite journal|url=http://www.csmonitor.com/2002/0110/p13s1-woaf.html|title=In South Africa, many blacks convert to Islam / The Christian Science Monitor|journal=The Christian Science Monitor|date=10 January 2002 |access-date=30 October 2011|archive-date=30 July 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130730173053/http://www.csmonitor.com/2002/0110/p13s1-woaf.html|url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.religionnewsblog.com/9398/muslims-say-their-faith-growing-fast-in-africa|title=Muslims say their faith growing fast in Africa|date=15 November 2004 |publisher=Religionnewsblog.com|access-date=7 November 2010|archive-date=1 October 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101001060330/http://www.religionnewsblog.com/9398/muslims-say-their-faith-growing-fast-in-africa|url-status=live }}</ref> There is a substantial [[History of the Jews in South Africa|Jewish population]], descended from [[History of the Jews in Europe|European Jews]] who arrived as a minority among other European settlers. This population peaked in the 1970s at 118,000, though only around 75,000 remain today, the rest having emigrated, mostly to Israel.<ref>[https://www.sajbd.org/index.php?p=pages/sa-jewish-history SA Jewish history] South African Jewish Board of Deputies</ref> Even so, these numbers make the Jewish community in South Africa the twelfth largest in the world. === Education === {{Main|Education in South Africa}} [[File:UCT Upper Campus landscape view.jpg|thumb|The [[University of Cape Town]]]] The adult [[literacy]] rate in 2007 was 89%.<ref name=unescolit>{{cite web|title=National adult literacy rates (15+), youth literacy rates (15β24) and elderly literacy rates (65+)|url=http://stats.uis.unesco.org/unesco/TableViewer/tableView.aspx?ReportId=210|publisher=UNESCO Institute for Statistics|access-date=3 May 2013|archive-date=29 October 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029183908/http://stats.uis.unesco.org/unesco/TableViewer/tableView.aspx?ReportId=210|url-status=dead}}</ref> South Africa has a [[Three-tier education|three-tier system]] of education starting with primary school, followed by high school, and tertiary education in the form of (academic) universities and universities of technology. Learners have twelve years of formal schooling, from grade 1 to 12. Grade R, or grade 0, is a pre-primary foundation year.<ref name=edufacts0831>{{cite web|url=http://www.southafrica.info/services/education/edufacts.htm|title=A parent's guide to schooling|access-date=31 August 2010|archive-date=22 July 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100722160229/http://www.southafrica.info/services/education/edufacts.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> Primary schools span the first seven years of schooling.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.southafrica.info/about/education/education.htm|title=Education in South Africa|publisher=SouthAfrica.info|access-date=20 June 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100617125606/http://www.southafrica.info/about/education/education.htm|archive-date=17 June 2010 }}</ref> High school education spans a further five years. The [[Matriculation in South Africa|National Senior Certificate]] examination takes place at the end of grade 12 and is necessary for tertiary studies at a [[List of universities in South Africa|South African university]].<ref name=edufacts0831 /> Public universities are divided into three types: traditional universities, which offer theoretically oriented university degrees; [[Institute of technology|universities of technology]] (formerly called ''[[technikon]]s''), which offer vocationally-oriented diplomas and degrees; and comprehensive universities, which offer both types of qualification. There are 23 public universities in South Africa: 11 traditional universities, 6 universities of technology, and 6 comprehensive universities. Under apartheid, schools for black people were subject to discrimination through inadequate funding and a separate syllabus called ''[[Bantu Education Act, 1953|Bantu Education]]'' which only taught skills sufficient to work as labourers.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://overcomingapartheid.msu.edu/sidebar.php?id=3|title=Bantu Education|publisher=Overcoming Apartheid|access-date=20 June 2010|archive-date=15 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200815013451/https://overcomingapartheid.msu.edu/sidebar.php?id=3|url-status=live }}</ref> In 2004, South Africa started reforming its tertiary education system, merging and incorporating small universities into larger institutions, and renaming all tertiary education institutions "university". By 2015, 1.4 million students in higher education have been aided by a financial aid scheme which was promulgated in 1999.<ref name=Cele>{{cite news|last1=Cele|first1=S'thembile|last2= Masondo|first2=Sipho|title=Shocking cost of SA's universities|url=http://www.fin24.com/Economy/Shocking-cost-of-SAs-universities-20150118|access-date=19 January 2015|agency=City Press|publisher=fin24.com|date=18 January 2015|archive-date=19 January 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150119205443/http://www.fin24.com/Economy/Shocking-cost-of-SAs-universities-20150118|url-status=live }}</ref> === Health === {{Main|Health in South Africa|Healthcare in South Africa}} [[File:Tygerberg from air.jpg|thumb|[[Tygerberg Hospital]] in [[Parow, South Africa|Parow, Cape Town]]]] According to the [[South African Institute of Race Relations]], the life expectancy in 2009 was 71 years for a white South African and 48 years for a black South African.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.hsrc.ac.za/News-document-1426.phtml|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120516165837/http://www.hsrc.ac.za/News-document-1426.phtml|url-status=dead|title=Peoples Budget Coalition Comments on the 2011/12 Budget|archive-date=16 May 2012}}</ref> The healthcare spending in the country is about 9% of GDP.<ref name="smartpl">{{cite web|title='Clinic-in-a-Box' seeks to improve South African healthcare|url=http://www.smartplanet.com/blog/global-observer/-8216clinic-in-a-box-seeks-to-improve-south-african-healthcare/12844|publisher=SmartPlanet|access-date=25 August 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130730011508/http://www.smartplanet.com/blog/global-observer/-8216clinic-in-a-box-seeks-to-improve-south-african-healthcare/12844|archive-date=30 July 2013 }}</ref> About 84% of the population depends on the public healthcare system,<ref name="smartpl" /> which is beset with chronic human resource shortages and limited resources.<ref name="icap">{{cite web|title=South Africa|url=http://icap.columbia.edu/where-we-work/south-africa|publisher=ICAP at Columbia University|access-date=25 August 2013|archive-date=13 July 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130713041358/http://icap.columbia.edu/where-we-work/south-africa|url-status=live}}</ref> About 20% of the population use private healthcare.<ref name="fmhealth" /> Only 16% of the population are covered by [[health insurance|medical aid schemes]];<ref name="medicl">{{cite web|title=What does the demand for healthcare look like in SA?|url=http://www.mediclinic.co.za/about/Documents/ECONEX%20NHInote%203.pdf|publisher=Mediclinic Southern Africa|access-date=25 August 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131002145453/http://www.mediclinic.co.za/about/Documents/ECONEX%20NHInote%203.pdf|archive-date=2 October 2013 }}</ref> the rest pay for private care [[Out-of-pocket expense|out-of-pocket]] or through in-hospital-only plans.<ref name="fmhealth">{{cite web|title=Motsoaledi to reform private health care|url=http://www.fm.co.za/fm/CoverStory/2013/07/04/motsoaledi-to-reform-private-health-care|publisher=Financial Mail|access-date=25 August 2013|archive-date=7 July 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130707152200/http://www.fm.co.za/fm/CoverStory/2013/07/04/motsoaledi-to-reform-private-health-care|url-status=live}}</ref> The three dominant hospital groups, [[Mediclinic International|Mediclinic]], [[LIFE Healthcare Group|Life Healthcare]] and [[Netcare]], together control 75% of the private hospital market.<ref name="fmhealth" /> ==== HIV/AIDS ==== {{Main|HIV/AIDS in South Africa}} [[File:Life expectancy in select African countries, 1950β2019.jpg|thumb|Life expectancy in select Southern African countries, 1950β2019. [[HIV/AIDS]] has caused a fall in life expectancy.]] According to the 2015 [[Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS|UNAIDS]] medical report, South Africa has an estimated seven million people who are living with HIV β more than any other country in the world.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.unaids.org/en/regionscountries/countries/southafrica|title=HIV and AIDS estimates (2015)|access-date=21 December 2014|archive-date=12 February 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150212190759/http://www.unaids.org/en/regionscountries/countries/southafrica|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2018, HIV prevalenceβthe percentage of people living with HIVβamong adults (15β49 years) was 20.4%, and in the same year 71,000 people died from an AIDS-related illness.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.unaids.org/en/regionscountries/countries/southafrica|title=South Africa|website=www.unaids.org|language=en|access-date=9 November 2019|archive-date=28 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190828020358/https://www.unaids.org/en/regionscountries/countries/southafrica|url-status=live}}</ref> A 2008 study revealed that HIV/AIDS infection is distinctly divided along racial lines: 13.6% of blacks are HIV-positive, whereas only 0.3% of whites have the virus.<ref name="ten">{{cite web|title=South Africa HIV & AIDS Statistics|url=http://www.avert.org/south-africa-hiv-aids-statistics.htm|publisher=AVERT.org|access-date=6 May 2013|archive-date=16 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016190720/http://www.avert.org/south-africa-hiv-aids-statistics.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> Most deaths are experienced by economically active individuals, resulting in many [[AIDS orphan]]s who in many cases depend on the state for care and financial support.<ref name="avertaids">{{cite web|url=http://www.avert.org/aidsorphans.htm|title=AIDS orphans|publisher=Avert|access-date=8 October 2006|archive-date=7 July 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100707054438/http://www.avert.org/aidsorphans.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> It is estimated that there are 1,200,000 orphans in South Africa.<ref name="avertaids" /> The link between HIV, a virus spread primarily by sexual contact, and AIDS was long [[HIV/AIDS denialism|denied]] by President [[Thabo Mbeki]] and his health minister [[Manto Tshabalala-Msimang]], who insisted that the many deaths in the country are caused by [[Malnutrition in South Africa|malnutrition]], and hence poverty, and not HIV.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.afrol.com/articles/21094|title=Sack SA Health Minister β world's AIDS experts|publisher=afrol News|access-date=8 October 2006|archive-date=18 October 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061018120544/http://www.afrol.com/articles/21094|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2007, in response to international pressure, the government made efforts to fight AIDS.<ref name="www.info.gov.za">{{cite web|url=http://www.info.gov.za/otherdocs/2007/aidsplan2007/situation_analysis.pdf|title=Situation Analysis. HIV & AIDS and STI Strategic Plan 2007β2011|publisher=info.gov.za|access-date=26 June 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130530221742/http://www.info.gov.za/otherdocs/2007/aidsplan2007/situation_analysis.pdf|archive-date=30 May 2013 }}</ref> After the [[2009 South African general election|2009 general elections]], President Jacob Zuma appointed [[Aaron Motsoaledi]] as the health minister and committed his government to increasing funding for and widening the scope of HIV treatment,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.unpan.org/Regions/Africa/PublicAdministrationNews/tabid/113/mctl/ArticleView/ModuleId/1460/articleId/21146/Zuma-Announces-NHI-AIDS-Reforms.aspx|title=Zuma announces AIDS reforms|publisher=UNPAN|access-date=9 March 2010|archive-date=27 December 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151227121601/http://www.unpan.org/Regions/Africa/PublicAdministrationNews/tabid/113/mctl/ArticleView/ModuleId/1460/articleId/21146/Zuma-Announces-NHI-AIDS-Reforms.aspx|url-status=dead}}</ref> and by 2015, South Africa had made significant progress, with the widespread availability of [[Management of HIV/AIDS|antiretroviral drugs]] resulted in an increase in life expectancy from 52.1 years to 62.5 years.<ref name="conversationHIVExcelled">{{cite web|url=https://theconversation.com/south-africa-has-excelled-in-treating-hiv-prevention-remains-a-disaster-51501|title=South Africa has excelled in treating HIV β prevention remains a disaster|first=Saiqa|last=Mullick|date=December 2015 |access-date=12 July 2018|archive-date=12 July 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180712052403/https://theconversation.com/south-africa-has-excelled-in-treating-hiv-prevention-remains-a-disaster-51501|url-status=live}}</ref> === Urbanization === One online database<ref>{{Cite web|title=South African Cities And Provinces β A Complete List|url=https://dirkstrauss.com/south-african-cities/|website=dirkstrauss.com|date=27 December 2018 |access-date=26 April 2021|archive-date=7 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210507050602/https://dirkstrauss.com/south-african-cities/|url-status=live}}</ref> lists South Africa having more than 12,600 cities and towns. 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