Half a million white South Africans have left the country in 25 years
More than half a million white South Africans have left the country in the last two decades, according to Statistics South Africa (StatsSA)'s latest Mid-Year Population Estimates report for 2025.
The data, which includes net international migration assumptions by population group, reveals that 555 497 white citizens have emigrated from South Africa between 2001 and 2026, with consistent net losses recorded every five years.
Persistent emigration trend
The report shows that South Africa experienced a loss of 99 574 white South Africans between 2001 and 2006, followed by 106 787 between 2006 and 2011, 111 346 between 2011 and 2016, 90 957 between 2016 and 2021, and 94 898 expected between 2021 and 2026.
By contrast, black African, coloured and Indian/Asian population groups all show net gains from international migration over the same period. Between 2021 and 2026, for example, 903 697 black African migrants are expected to have entered the country.
Age profile points to shifting demographic
In addition to emigration trends, the report also outlines the changing age structure of the white population. The largest proportion of white South Africans is between 40 and 64 years, with the 50–59 age group being the highest.
This suggests a maturing demographic that may be less likely to emigrate due to age, settled lifestyles, and potentially limited new employment opportunities.
In contrast, the lowest white population group is among those aged 0–9, suggesting fewer births and declining growth among young white South Africans.
Stats SA noted that these changes reflect broader demographic shifts, including lower fertility rates and population ageing, which affect all racial groups but are more pronounced in some.
ALSO READ: SA's health recovery underway after deep scars left by Mbeki's Aids denial
Migration trends continue to shape population
Despite the net loss among white South Africans, overall international migration into South Africa is increasing.
Between 2021 and 2026, Gauteng is expected to receive the highest number of migrants, approximately 1.42 million, followed by the Western Cape with 500 347.
'The Mid-Year Population Estimates report has assumed a resumption in migratory patterns, almost reaching pre-pandemic levels by 2025 with an upward trajectory going forward,' Stats SA stated.
The data underscores the ongoing demographic transformation of South Africa, shaped by both internal population dynamics and international migration flows.
NOW READ: South Africans living longer: Here's the life expectancy rate in 2025
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
IOL News
an hour ago
- IOL News
The shadows of human trafficking loom large in South Africa
This week, the recent observance of World Day Against Trafficking in Persons has amplified calls for urgent action against human trafficking in South Africa, a crime that is claimed to take advantage of the most vulnerable members of society. In a significant effort to address this critical issue, Deputy Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development Andries Nel recently launched Local Task Team Offices, aimed at bolstering anti-trafficking initiatives at ports of entry. This initiative is backed by a newly established policy framework designed to enhance the country's collective response to trafficking. Highlighting the impact of ongoing efforts, Nel pointed to the rescue of 234 identified trafficking victims over the past year. 'These are 234 lives saved, and there are many more whose lives are affected by trafficking,' he emphasised. The urgency of the situation is reflected in alarming global statistics; the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime reported a 25% increase in detected trafficking victims worldwide in 2024, with children making up 38% of those affected. According to Nel, Africa has become a significant source and destination for trafficking, with South Africa serving as both a source and transit hub. 'As a source country, South Africans are trafficked domestically and internationally. As a transit country, traffickers use our borders to move victims from neighbouring countries to other destinations,' Nel stated. He said in an encouraging development, South Africa's efforts to combat trafficking have led to an upgrade in its status from Tier Two Watch List to Tier Two in the 2024 US Department of State's Trafficking in Persons Report. In the current financial year alone, 32 new trafficking prosecutions have been initiated, with 67 ongoing cases involving 156 accused individuals currently before the courts. The collaborative ethos of this fight was echoed by Jason Cogill, CEO of the National Freedom Network (NFN), during this year's Human Trafficking Awareness Week, who emphasised the need for shared commitment: 'To effectively combat human trafficking, strategic networking, collaboration, and partnership are needed. Together, we are stronger. Together, we can end trafficking.' One story that highlights the gravity of the issue shared with the Saturday Star is of a young woman named Thandi, given to protect her identity from a small town in the Eastern Cape. Thandi was lured by a false promise of a job in the city and found herself trapped in a brothel, her freedom violently taken. After several harrowing months, she was identified as a trafficking victim during a police raid and brought to safety. "Those first weeks, I was so scared and broken. But the social workers and ladies at the safe house, they became like my sisters. They helped me see I still had a future," she shared her harrowing experience. Rescue was just the beginning of Thandi's road to recovery. Through the NFN's network, she entered a specialised aftercare shelter where she received medical attention and trauma counselling to begin healing the invisible wounds of abuse. Dr. Juliet Sambo, a lecturer at the Department of Social Work and Criminology at the University of Pretoria, shed further light on the complexities of trafficking. Sambo notes that economic disparity, alongside inadequate law enforcement, creates an environment where organised crime thrives. 'Official statistics are unreliable, obscuring the true scale of trafficking,' she explains, noting that women and children are disproportionately affected, making up 55.5% and 44.5% of victims, respectively. The horrific case of six-year-old Joshlin Smith, who went missing in February 2024, starkly illustrates the crisis. Sambo warns that trafficking is intimately tied to other illicit activities, with the internet playing a pivotal role in recruitment and exploitation. 'Human trafficking persists in South Africa due to a combination of gender inequality and economic instability,' she argued. Saturday Star
The Citizen
2 hours ago
- The Citizen
24 hours in pictures, 1 August 2025
24 hours in pictures, 1 August 2025 Through the lens: The Citizen's Picture Editors select the best news photographs from South Africa and around the world. Congress activists burn an effigy of US President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as they protest against the Indo-US trade deal, after the former imposed 25 percent tariffs on Indian goods, during a demonstration in Kolkata on August 1, 2025. President Trump labelled Russia and US ally India 'dead economies,' indicating that his threat to ramp up tariffs on New Delhi will now go ahead. India will face 25 percent tariffs while also announcing an unspecified 'penalty' over New Delhi's purchases of Russian weapons and energy. (Photo by Dibyangshu SARKAR / AFP) Participants attend the launch of Ghana's Affirmative Action (Gender Equality) Act at the Accra International Conference Centre, in Accra, Ghana, 31 July 2025. 31 July marks the official launch of Ghana's Affirmative Action Act which was passed a year ago by Ghana's Parliament. Ghana's Affirmative Action (Gender Equality) Act, 2024, mandates a minimum of 30 percent women's representation across public institutions, increasing to 50 percent by 2030. It also introduces penalties for non-compliance, tax incentives for private sector adherence, and applies to political parties, trade unions, the judiciary, and public agencies. Picture: EPA/FRANK KPORFOR Cowboy boots are seen at the Rio of Mercedes cowboy boot factory, on July 31, 2025, in Mercedes, Texas. In an unusual consequence of Donald Trump's tariffs, cowboy boots 'made in the USA' will suffer from the 30% tariff due to come into force on August 1 targeting South Africa, which produces the overwhelming majority of the ostrich leather so prized for these boots. (Photo by RONALDO SCHEMIDT / AFP) (L-R) Silver medallist South Africa's swimmer Pieter Coetze, gold medallist Hungary's swimmer Hubert Kos and bronze medallist France's swimmer Yohann Ndoye-Brouard celebrate on the podium of the men's 200m backstroke swimming event during the 2025 World Aquatics Championships in Singapore on August 1, 2025. (Photo by MANAN VATSYAYANA / AFP) This handout photo taken over Gaza and released on August 1, 2025 by the Spanish Ministry of Defence shows the release of humanitarian aid from a Spanish Air Force Airbus A400M Atlas airplane over Gaza. (Photo by HANDOUT / Spain Defence Ministry / AFP) Festival-goers attend the first day of the Pol'and'Rock Festival in Czaplinek, north-western Poland, 31 July 2025. The festival will run until 02 August. Picture: EPA/JERZY MUSZYNSKI A fisherman smokes a beedi, a hand-rolled cigarette, as he rests inside his boat on the banks of the Yamuna River in New Delhi on August 1, 2025. (Photo by Arun SANKAR / AFP) Hot air balloons are prepared to participate during the celebration of the XXV International Hot Air Balloon Regatta 'Haro, capital of Rioja' and the XLI Spanish Aerostation Championship, in Haro, La Rioja, Spain, 31 July 2025. The events take place from 30 July to 03 August. Picture: EPA/RAQUEL MANZANARES Members of the Gumatj clan of the Yolngu people from north-eastern Arnhem Land perform the Bunggul traditional dance during the 25th annual Garma Festival in Gulkula, Northern Territory, Australia, 01 August 2025. Garma Festival, Australia's most significant Indigenous cultural gathering, is held each year on Yolu Country in northeast Arnhem Land, uniting ceremony, community, and national dialogue as it celebrates a significant 25-year milestone in 2025. Picture: EPA/JAMES ROSS Soldiers of the Croatian Armed Forces take part in a military parade in Zagreb, Croatia, 31 July 2025. Croatia marked the 30th anniversary of Operation Storm, the last major battle of the Croatian War of Independence in August 1995, with a military parade featuring more than 3,500 soldiers and several hundred military vehicles. Picture: EPA/ANTONIO BAT A cosplayer in the character of Zhuge Liang of a video game poses during ChinaJoy, known as China Digital Entertainment Expo and Conference, at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre in Shanghai on August 1, 2025. (Photo by Hector RETAMAL / AFP) MORE: 24 hours in pictures, 31 July 2025
TimesLIVE
3 hours ago
- TimesLIVE
Five things to know about deputy chief justice Dunstan Mlambo
President Cyril Ramaphosa has appointed Dunstan Mlambo as deputy chief justice with effect from Friday. At 65, Mlambo brings nearly three decades of judicial experience and a lifetime of legal activism to his new role. Here are five things to know about the new deputy chief justice. 1. A legal career grounded in public interest and transformation Before joining the bench in 1997, Mlambo worked as a public interest and trade union lawyer, beginning as a legal assistant in the KaNgwane government. He later joined the Legal Resources Centre in 1987 before making a rare transition into corporate law, becoming an associate partner at Bowman Gilfillan in 1993. In 1995, he cofounded Mlambo & Modise Attorneys. His rise to the judiciary began with an appointment to the labour court and he later served in the Gauteng High Court (2000), Supreme Court of Appeal (2005) and as judge president of the labour court (2010) before assuming leadership of the Gauteng division of the high court in 2012. 2. Leading South Africa's busiest court division As judge president of the Gauteng High Court covering both Johannesburg and Pretoria Mlambo oversaw the country's most complex and demanding judicial workload. He led the division with innovation and foresight, introducing initiatives like the re-establishment of the commercial court in 2018 and mandatory civil mediation in 2025 to address case backlogs. His tenure also saw the creation of two new stand-alone high courts in Limpopo and Mpumalanga, an expansion of access to justice that many see as one of his most impactful legacies. 3. Key judgments that shaped jurisprudence Mlambo is more than an administrator — he's an influential jurist who has authored several landmark decisions: President of the Republic v Public Protector: Held former president Jacob Zuma personally liable for legal costs related to the 'State Capture' report. MultiChoice v NPA (Oscar Pistorius case): Allowed for the broadcasting of the high-profile trial. SAPS v Solidarity obo Barnard: Upheld affirmative action as a justifiable measure to address past discrimination — later affirmed by the Constitutional Court. These judgments reflect Mlambo's commitment to transparency, equality and the transformative spirit of the constitution. 4. A vision for transformative and accessible justice In his recent Judicial Service Commission (JSC) interview, Mlambo outlined a progressive vision rooted in the belief that South Africa's constitution must be a tool for economic justice. 'I think we adopted what is called a progressive constitution that seeks to uplift the blight of people,' he said, advocating for 'carefully crafted litigation' to dismantle bottlenecks that keep South Africans trapped in poverty. He also criticised Rule 46A, which allows banks to repossess homes, arguing that 'as a judiciary, we need to find a way of reforming these legal rules that form part of this conservative legal culture'. Mlambo is also a proponent of legal reform through technology and training, calling for a mediation act and suggesting the adoption of AI-driven legal tools as used in Brazil to boost efficiency. 5. Ethical leadership and accountability Mlambo has served on numerous local and international legal boards, including the Centre for the Advancement of Community Advice Offices (CAOSA), the International Legal Foundation and Africa Legal Aid. His ethical compass was evident when he revoked the appointment of an acting judge over sexual harassment complaints and supported chief justice Mandisa Maya's proposed sexual harassment policy. As he steps into this new chapter, all eyes will be on how he continues to reshape the country's legal landscape from one of the highest seats of judicial power.
