Gauteng-sized populations in South Africa

Although Gauteng is South Africa’s smallest province by area, covering approximately 18 179km2, it is home to over 12 million people (Census, 2011). According to the StatsSA 2013 mid-year population estimates, the population stands at 12 728 438. In both 1996 and 2001 KwaZulu- Natal was the largest province, in terms of population size. Today, Gauteng has the largest population of all the provinces, with over two million more people than KwaZulu-Natal. In 1996, Gauteng constituted 18,8% of the South African population, in 2001 20,9%, and 23,7% in 2011. Using data from Census 2011, this map compares Gauteng’s population to other areas with similar-sized populations, by aggregating South Africa’s provinces into hypothetical areas with population sizes roughly equivalent to Gauteng. Gauteng’s 2011 population of 12,3 million is bigger than KwaZulu-Natal (10,3 million); or the combined populations of the entire Mpumalanga and Limpopo (9,4 million); or Eastern Cape and Free State (9,3 million); or Western Cape and Northern Cape and North West (10,4 million). Note: this South African version is based on a map that splits the United Kingdom into areas with a London-sized population (see bit.ly/1lrANvqand imgur.com/PKSvQXW).