@StatsSA
Statistics South Africa said the country's population on 2 February 2022 was 62 million, with a percentage change from 2011 to 2022 of 19.8%.
Statistician General, Risenga Maluleke, on Tuesday, presented the Census22 report to President Cyril Ramaphosa at the Union Buildings.
Stats SA said Census 2022 was the first digital census in South Africa, with households given the option of face-to-face, telephonic, or online completion of the questionnaire.
It also noted that the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the census reference point being shifted from October to February.
Stats SA said the Census found that Gauteng remained the largest province in South Africa, with 15.1 million people, having grown by 2.8 million from 2011 to 2022.
The Eastern Cape population size stood at 6.6 million people and a growth rate of 0.9%, According to the data, Nelson Mandela Bay's population size was over 1.15 million people, and Buffalo City Metro at 781 853.
Maluleke said South Africa exhibits a unique distribution of languages with 24.4% of households speaking isiZulu, which remained the most spoken language between 1996 and 2022.
"This is followed by isiXhosa (16.3%) and Afrikaans (10.6%)".
The Census also found that six out of 10 children between the ages 0–4 years had access to some form of early childhood development (ECD) programme.
Maluleke said households with access to electricity for lighting increased from 58.1% in 1996 to 94.7% in 2022.
President Cyril Ramaphosa said this was the fourth census undertaken since the advent of democracy in 1994, and, as such, it contributes to a vast body of knowledge that describes the state and the progress of our nation.
"The data contained in a census is one of the most crucial planning, monitoring, and evaluation tools for governments. It informs the planning, budgeting, and policy-making work of government at the most fundamental level," the President said.
