Poverty gap index extreme poverty in South Africa
South Africa: Poverty gap index extreme poverty was 5.1 in 2022. ▼ Falling
Latest (2022)
5.1
World rank
24th
of 120 countries
All-time high
21.9
in 2000
All-time low
5.1
in 2022
Years of data
7
1993–2022
Poverty gap index extreme poverty in South Africa, 1993–2022
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 5.1 for poverty gap index extreme poverty in 2022. That is the lowest value across all 7 years on record.
That represents a change of down 47.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, poverty gap index extreme poverty in South Africa peaked at 21.9 in 2000 and was at its lowest, 5.1, in 2022.
That places South Africa 24th out of 120 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the top quarter.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 19.32 | 19.32 | 19.32 | 1 |
| 2000s | 17.19 | 14.23 | 21.9 | 3 |
| 2010s | 9.72 | 9.62 | 9.82 | 2 |
| 2020s | 5.1 | 5.1 | 5.1 | 1 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More poverty & inequality data for South Africa
- Data deprivation poverty surveys per decade 1 (2025)
- Fertility rate vs the share living in extreme poverty 2.22 (2023)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty 4,562 (2024)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, annual growth rate -20.01 % change on previous year (2024)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 28.13 (2022)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality 28.13 (2022)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2022)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, annual growth rate 0.8444 % change on previous year (2022)
- Gender inequality index from the human development report 0.388 (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is poverty gap index extreme poverty in South Africa?
- Poverty gap index extreme poverty in South Africa was 5.1 in 2022, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest poverty gap index extreme poverty recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 21.9 in 2000.
- What is the lowest poverty gap index extreme poverty recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.1 in 2022.
- How does South Africa rank for poverty gap index extreme poverty?
- South Africa ranks 24th out of 120 countries with data for 2022.
- Is poverty gap index extreme poverty rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 47.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Poverty gap index extreme poverty. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 7 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).