The Demographics chapter of the South Africa Survey provides 75 pages of data on how many South Africans there are, how old they are, where they are, and what the major fertility/family/language/religious/human development, and migration trends for the population are. Key population trends and projections are provided from 1911 to 2040. Data is broken down by race, gender, sex, age, and local authority and various combinations of the above. Population density and geographical representation and urbanisation trends are given. Fertility, birth, and infant/under five/adult mortality trends are given. Data is provided on the impact of HIV on the South African population to 2040. Trends within households, including size and composition, are given. More than ten pages are devoted to trends on the South African family, including the numbers of child-headed households/orphans/double orphans/presence of fathers in households/single parents as well as a number of other family-related indicators. Data is given on major religious affiliations, and changes in such affiliation since 1980. Human development index trends are tracked since 1980 together with international comparisons. Finally, the chapter provides internal migration data to 2011 as well as historical trends since 1940. International immigration comparisons since 1940 are also included.

The Economic chapter in the South African Survey 2009/2010 features 99 pages of in-depth economic research into the country. It includes the macro-economic position of the country with key international comparisons as well as a very detailed economic profile of the country. A review of South Africa’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) includes a breakdown of real growth and income level trends from 1961-2009, gross national income per capita for 2008 using purchasing power parity, a breakdown of industry by gross value added, and a look at provincial and local economies. Data is presented inflation trends and components from 1976 to 2009 including data by province and area. The chapter further includes statistics on saving, investment, the exchange rate, and trade including imports, exports and their composition. The public finance section of the chapter includes the total tax revenue for years 2003-2009, taxable income and tax assessed by age group, and sex, as well as by source of income and by province. A breakdown of the budget for 2009/2010 in terms of national and provincial spending, budget deficit and balance of payments as a proportion of GDP and public debt is also contained within the chapter. On a smaller scale, provincial budgets and municipal finance are included.

The Employment and Incomes chapter is a 101-page report of who in South Africa earns how much through doing what and where they do it. Labour market trends are broken down over a decade as well as by race, sex, age, and location. A ten-year review of the working environment by sector, industry, race, and sex is provided. Employment trends by the state including in state-owned enterprises are given. A review of informal sector work trends over the past six years is provided. On unemployment, this report provides trends over six years for unemployment numbers on both the broad and narrow definitions, age groups, gender categories, length of time unemployed, the relationship between skills and unemployment, and even unemployment by marital status. International unemployment comparisons are drawn. Six pages are devoted to the underutilisation of labour in South Africa, including data on the non-market activities of discouraged workers. Income trends are assessed for both individuals and households, by category of income, sex, education, source of income, and race. Both ten and fifty-year trends for disposable income are provided. Six pages are devoted to expenditure and consumption patterns as well as credit patterns. Living Standard Measures are provided for 2001-2009. The report concludes with national, provincial, and local authority poverty trends measured on both the $1/day and $2/day indicators.

The Business and Labour chapter of the Survey provides the most detailed available report on business and labour trends for South Africa together with selected international comparisons that will greatly improve the quality of decisions taking by private sector investors doing business in South Africa. Data is presented for the number of business enterprises by size including SMMEs, public and private fixed capital stock, state owned enterprises, franchises, and the small business environment. An infrastructure review provides data on ports, vessels calling at ports, railways, roadways, airports and aircraft movements, energy usage and resources, and water and dams. The business environment is reviewed via a global competitiveness index and report. Data is included for the ease of doing business in South Africa, a financial development index, an economic freedom index, ease of trading information, an e-readiness ranking, a network readiness ranking, and a mining attractiveness ranking. Sectoral business trends are provided for agriculture including data on production and consumption by province, on wholesale and retail trade, on tourism, and on vehicle sales and production. Ten pages are devoted to BEE developments and trends including BEE transactions between 1994 and 2009. South Africa’s top companies and top empowerment companies are ranked. On industrial relations data is provided on trade unions and their membership, bargaining councils, wage settlements by major sectors and unions, minimum sectoral wages, strikes, lockouts, strike triggers, and employee benefits.

The Education chapter provides a comprehensive overview of the South African education sector. The chapter commences with a financial overview, with short- and medium-term trends being presented. International comparisons of educational spending are provided.

A qualification profile of the South African population is given. This is followed by detailed data on literacy and numeracy. A thorough overview of enrolment trends is then provided, from early childhood development up to enrolment of people older than 18. Ten-year trends for enrolment at public and independent schools are also provided, including a racial breakdown. The growth of the independent sector is highlighted.

A comprehensive profile of teachers is given, with information on the number of teachers, their level of qualification, and the numbers of students who graduate with teaching qualifications each year.

This is followed by a detailed section on the output of the South African education sector. This ranges from matric examination results, to the output of further education and training colleges, to the number of apprentices being trained. Matric results by race are also provided, and the performance of Africans in matric, going back to 1955, is also given.

A comprehensive section on public higher education is also provided. Enrolment by race at South African universities since 1995 is provided, as is information on awards made by universities. A comparison of degrees awarded in 1991 and 2008 by race is provided. This shows how the higher education sector in the country has been racially transformed. Information on throughput rates of the South African tertiary sector is also provided. The chapter concludes with information on private higher education.

The Survey is the only journal which provides such a comprehensive overview of the South African education sector in one accessible document. It is invaluable for any decision-maker and strategist, as well as anyone interested or involved in South African education.

The Health and Welfare chapter provides a detailed report on trends for South Africa together with selected international comparisons. The health section contains indicators on a number of diseases such as diarrhoea, malaria, and measles. The section on tuberculosis, which is the leading cause of death in South Africa, provides comprehensive information. Data on HIV/AIDS covers historical as well as projected prevalence. The section on medical personnel provides data on medical graduates, vacancy rates, and available medical personnel as well as the uptake by race of medical aid membership. Information on both private and public hospitals is also included. Statistics on blood transfusions, organ transplants, and circumcision are some of the additions to the chapter. The welfare section gives a breakdown of the welfare budget as well as all the types of social grants, their values, and the rapid growth in the number of beneficiaries over recent years.

The Living Conditions and Communications chapter challenges the widely held belief that service delivery in South Africa has failed. The chapter commences with a broad overview of living conditions in 2009 before providing an assessment of changes in living conditions over the past 13 years. Without exception both the number and the proportion of households with access to services have improved – often substantially. The chapter then reviews progress in land reform before providing specific and detailed data on access to clean water, sanitation services, housing, energy, and refuse removal. Much of this data is provided on a provincial basis and incorporates trends over time. Information is then provided on service delivery backlogs. The chapter further provides data on access to financial services, broadcasting services, postal services, telecommunications including internet access, and transport. The chapter’s 90 pages include the most concise and up to date information tracking South Africa’s progress in improving the living conditions of its people. It is essential material for planners in Government, civil society, and the private business sector.

The Crime and Security chapter of the South Africa Survey provides the most detailed and complete overview of crime and safety trends ever published on South Africa. National crime trends are published as rates and actual numbers from 1994/5 to the present. Crime trends are then broken down into property crimes, contact crimes, serious crimes, and crimes heavily dependent on police detection to show both 16 year trends and one year trends. A special section is devoted to aggravated robbery and the various types of aggravated robbery and individually assessed. Further special sections are devoted to crimes on farms, crimes against foreign nationals, witch killings, violence during strike action, youths and crime, and taxi violence. All major crime categories are then broken down over time for every province since 1994/5 and since 2008/09 for all major municipal areas in the country. Data is then provided for causes of death, manner of violent deaths, and the top ten causes of non-natural deaths in the country. Trends are given for crime reporting by victims between 1998 and 2007. Trends are also given for perceptions of crime and the changes in those perceptions over time. The chapter then provides limited international crime and corruption comparisons for South Africa. Thirteen pages are provided reviewing the performance of the South African Police Force including personnel, fatalities, escapes, deaths in custody, and crimes committed by the police. Trends are published on cases and prosecutions handled by the criminal justice system between 2003/4 and 2007/08. Data is recorded for the judiciary and the bar including the number of judges, magistrates, and members of the bar by race and sex, the remuneration of judges, and international comparisons on how our judiciary measures up to that of the rest of the world. The chapter then moves on to a detailed review of the prisons service and of prisoners in the country by race and age and sex and province and crime category and duration of sentence and sentenced/unsentenced status. International prisons trends are then provided. The Department of Defence is assessed in similar detail including a review of command structures by race and sex and an assessment of foreign deployments. Finally, the chapter concludes with a review of the size and scope of the private security industry in the country.

The chapter commences with a breakdown of party representation in Parliament. A breakdown of party representation is also given for each of the nine provincial legislatures.

Information is then given for party representation in local authorities. An analysis of by-election results since the last local government poll in 2006 is also provided. This allows readers to see the trend of how the African National Congress (ANC) is retaining much of its support, but has lost a significant number of by-elections. The official opposition, the Democratic Alliance (DA), also managed to retain its support, as well as gain a number of municipal seats through by-elections.

The chapter also shows that there has been a significant increase in the number of women serving as members of Parliament or of provincial legislatures.

There is also information on the number of protests in South Africa, both violent and peaceful.

This is followed by an analysis of key trends in South African politics, ranging from corruption to foreign affairs to the activities of opposition parties.

The Institute’s own Rainbow Index is also provided, which is a scorecard of South African democracy. It shows that more vigilance is needed. The chapter concludes with international comparisons. These include the World Bank’s Governance Indicators, global rankings of freedom from Freedom House, and South Africa’s rating for press freedom from Reporters without Borders.

The chapter allows readers to gain a firm grasp of the current South African political environment.