South Africans migrate to where the jobs are. They move from poorer provinces to the richer ones, and from rural areas to the cities.
Gauteng is South Africa’s wealthiest province, mostly a city region and the centre of the country’s economy. It has the largest population, constantly increased by migration. Gauteng’s net migration rate (the number of people moving in minus people moving out) was nearly two million between 2006 and 2016. Its population will be swelled by another million from 2016 to 2021.
The Eastern Cape is the poorest province. Between 2006 and 2016 a million of its people migrated to other provinces, while only 300,000 or so moved into the province, leaving the Eastern Cape with a negative net migration of minus 700,000 people. From 2016 to 2021 the Eastern Cape is expected to lose another 324,000 people to migration.
Read more
- South Africa’s population
- The nine provinces of South Africa
- Infographic: The population of South Africa’s nine provinces
- Infographic: Population density in South Africa’s nine provinces
- Animation: The economies of South Africa’s provinces
Estimated migration between the provinces from 2006 to 2011
Province | Out-migrants | In-migrants | Net migration |
---|---|---|---|
Eastern Cape |
512,305 |
153,823 |
-358,482 |
Free State |
149,393 |
120,146 |
-29,247 |
Gauteng |
419,366 |
1,323,985 |
904,619 |
KwaZulu-Natal |
322,018 |
257,968 |
-64,050 |
Limpopo |
372,131 |
216,247 |
-155,884 |
Mpumalanga |
178,826 |
231,420 |
52,594 |
Northern Cape |
68,296 |
69,453 |
1,157 |
North West |
172,074 |
258,766 |
86,691 |
Western Cape |
142,758 |
414,826 |
272,069 |
Estimated migration between the provinces from 2011 to 2016
Province | Out-migrants | In-migrants | Net migration |
---|---|---|---|
Eastern Cape |
499,543 |
173,372 |
-326,171 |
Free State |
154,405 |
133,492 |
-20,913 |
Gauteng |
481,263 |
1,462,553 |
981,290 |
KwaZulu-Natal |
340,228 |
277,867 |
-62,360 |
Limpopo |
392,905 |
249,137 |
-143,767 |
Mpumalanga |
194,958 |
258,961 |
64,003 |
Northern Cape |
72,441 |
75,752 |
3,311 |
North West |
191,413 |
289,177 |
97,764 |
Western Cape |
159,513 |
451,885 |
292,372 |
Projected migration between the provinces from 2016 to 2021
Province | Out-migrants | In-migrants | Net migration |
---|---|---|---|
Eastern Cape |
515,648 |
191,435 |
-324,213 |
Free State |
160,107 |
147,246 |
-12,860 |
Gauteng |
544,875 |
1,595,106 |
1,050,230 |
KwaZulu-Natal |
360,830 |
307,123 |
-53706.4 |
Limpopo |
417,453 |
278,847 |
-138,606 |
Mpumalanga |
212,271 |
285,678 |
73,407 |
Northern Cape |
76,832 |
82,502 |
5,670 |
North West |
207,662 |
317,261 |
109,599 |
Western Cape |
175,831 |
485,560 |
309,729 |
Researched, written and designed by Mary Alexander.
Updated 2 October 2020
The graphic on this page is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence.
Categories: Infographics
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