Human caused air pollution exposure in South Africa
South Africa: Human caused air pollution exposure was 21.6 in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
21.6
Change on year
up 3.8%
World rank
52nd
of 240 countries
All-time high
21.8
in 2022
All-time low
18.34
in 1999
Years of data
27
1998–2024
Human caused air pollution exposure in South Africa, 1998–2024
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2024, human caused air pollution exposure in South Africa stood at 21.6.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.8% on the previous year and up 5.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, human caused air pollution exposure in South Africa peaked at 21.8 in 2022 and was at its lowest, 18.34, in 1999.
South Africa ranks 52nd of 240 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 27 years of available data.
Human caused air pollution exposure in South Africa, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 19.58 | — |
| 1999 | 18.34 | -6.3% |
| 2000 | 19.8 | +8.0% |
| 2001 | 19.22 | -2.9% |
| 2002 | 19.17 | -0.3% |
| 2003 | 18.56 | -3.2% |
| 2004 | 19.41 | +4.6% |
| 2005 | 20.35 | +4.8% |
| 2006 | 19.55 | -3.9% |
| 2007 | 19.22 | -1.7% |
| 2008 | 20.6 | +7.2% |
| 2009 | 19.46 | -5.5% |
| 2010 | 21.47 | +10.3% |
| 2011 | 19.55 | -8.9% |
| 2012 | 20.67 | +5.7% |
| 2013 | 20 | -3.2% |
| 2014 | 20.44 | +2.2% |
| 2015 | 20.58 | +0.7% |
| 2016 | 18.86 | -8.4% |
| 2017 | 20.26 | +7.4% |
| 2018 | 20.38 | +0.6% |
| 2019 | 20.24 | -0.7% |
| 2020 | 19.15 | -5.4% |
| 2021 | 19.94 | +4.1% |
| 2022 | 21.8 | +9.3% |
| 2023 | 20.8 | -4.6% |
| 2024 | 21.6 | +3.8% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 21.6 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 15.58, 1.4× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 21.6 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 18.28, 1.2× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 18.96 | 18.34 | 19.58 | 2 |
| 2000s | 19.53 | 18.56 | 20.6 | 10 |
| 2010s | 20.24 | 18.86 | 21.47 | 10 |
| 2020s | 20.66 | 19.15 | 21.8 | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More environment data for South Africa
- Grazing land use over the long-term, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Grazing land use over the long-term, per unit of GDP 0.0002 hectares per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Grazing land use over the long-term, per capita 1.3 hectares per person (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 5.46 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 8.52 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.275 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.05 °C (2025)
- Grazing land use over the long-term, per square kilometre 69.19 hectares per square kilometre (2024)
- Sawnwood, coniferous — Production, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is human caused air pollution exposure in South Africa?
- Human caused air pollution exposure in South Africa was 21.6 in 2024, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest human caused air pollution exposure recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 21.8 in 2022.
- What is the lowest human caused air pollution exposure recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 18.34 in 1999.
- How does South Africa rank for human caused air pollution exposure?
- South Africa ranks 52nd out of 240 countries with data for 2024.
- Is human caused air pollution exposure rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 5.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Human caused air pollution exposure. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 27 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).