Gauteng: a miracle province

Everything about the Gauteng province is beyond normal and can only be defined as extra ordinary. In terms of geographic size, the Province is only 1,4% the total size of South Africa yet Gauteng contributes 33% to South Africa’s GDP. Following the results of the 2011 Census, for the first time in the history of South Africa, Gauteng now has a larger population than Kwa-Zulu Natal. This population statistic is really mind-boggling and to put it into perspective, Gauteng’s land area which is a mere 1,4% of South Africa’s land mass, is home to 23% of South Arica’s total population.

Due to Gauteng’s role in South Africa’s economy, the province is a consistent net migration gainer. Everyday, more and more people from other provinces trek to Gauteng in search for a better life. The Province’s population size must surely be putting some strain on the infrastructure of the province.

To further emphasize just how extra ordinary Gauteng’s position really is, in the context of South Africa’s economy. The world’s financial capital New York City is part of New York State and a state is equivalent to a Province in South Africa. New York State, accounts for 4,7% of the USA’s land mass and with a population of 19,5 million New York State accounts for just over 6% of the USA’s total population. New York State contributes 7.7% towards the USA’s national GDP. To have a Province like Gauteng with 23% of the national population, contributing 33% to national GDP is not a bad statistic at all, a scary statistic however is that Gauteng, with a land mass of 1,4% of South Africa's total, housing 23% of the national population. On the face of it, Gauteng’s challenge therefore seems to be its limited geographic size. However, increasing the borders of the Province is not the answer, the real answer lies in the creation of more economic hubs or zones elsewhere in South Africa, outside of Gauteng, in order to diversify South Africa’s “sources” of GDP.

It is a miracle that Gauteng’s infrastructure has not collapsed under the strain of its large population, but perhaps depending on where in Gauteng one lives, there may well be signs of the infrastructure manifesting in certain parts of the Province. Whichever way one looks at things, Gauteng is a "miracle" Province.

Stats SA does a noble job

A few days ago Stats SA released the results of the 2011 census survey and the numbers were not much of a surprise. At 51,7 million people living in South Africa today, this is a 25% increase compared to the previous census of 2001. What is absolutely remarkable however, is that when one looks at the 2011 Mid-Year population estimates by Stats SA, that figure of 50,1 million was just over 3% shy of the 2011 census figure of 51,7 million.

This remarkably small margin of difference between the estimate and the census figures bears testament to the brilliant work that Stats SA is doing, it shows that the methods are used to estimate South Arica’s population between each census, are sound and can be relied upon. Even more remarkable is that Stats SA has the wherewithal to actually track South Africa’s population dynamics, period. South Africa is indeed one of the few countries in the developing world, let alone in Africa, which has access to such rich information about its population. Thanks in large part to the skills of those who run Stats SA.

To be sure, a census is but a scientific estimate of our country’s populations but thank goodness Stats SA exists to do this very valuable and noble task.