Share of the rural and urban population with access … rural, urban in South Africa

South Africa: Share of the rural and urban population with access … rural, urban was 96.5 in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
96.5
Change on year
up 0.2%
World rank
98th
of 189 countries
All-time high
96.5
in 2023
All-time low
76.9
in 2000
Years of data
24
2000–2023

Share of the rural and urban population with access to clean fuels in South Africa, 2000–2023

0204060801002000201120232000: 76.92001: 77.92002: 79.12003: 80.32004: 81.72005: 832006: 84.32007: 85.52008: 86.72009: 87.92010: 892011: 90.12012: 912013: 91.72014: 92.52015: 93.22016: 93.92017: 94.42018: 94.92019: 95.22020: 95.72021: 962022: 96.32023: 96.5

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

The most recent figure for share of the rural and urban population with access to clean fuels in South Africa is 96.5, measured in 2023. That is the highest value across all 24 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.2% on the previous year and up 5.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of the rural and urban population with access to clean fuels in South Africa peaked at 96.5 in 2023 and was at its lowest, 76.9, in 2000.

South Africa ranks 98th of 189 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 24 years of available data.

Share of the rural and urban population with access … rural, urban in South Africa, year by year

Annual values for Share of the rural and urban population with access to clean fuels for cooking in South Africa, 2000 to 2023.
Year Value Change
2000 76.9 —
2001 77.9 +1.3%
2002 79.1 +1.5%
2003 80.3 +1.5%
2004 81.7 +1.7%
2005 83 +1.6%
2006 84.3 +1.6%
2007 85.5 +1.4%
2008 86.7 +1.4%
2009 87.9 +1.4%
2010 89 +1.3%
2011 90.1 +1.2%
2012 91 +1.0%
2013 91.7 +0.8%
2014 92.5 +0.9%
2015 93.2 +0.8%
2016 93.9 +0.8%
2017 94.4 +0.5%
2018 94.9 +0.5%
2019 95.2 +0.3%
2020 95.7 +0.5%
2021 96 +0.3%
2022 96.3 +0.3%
2023 96.5 +0.2%

South Africa compared with similar countries

  • South Africa's 96.5 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 96.5, 1.0× the median. (57 countries reporting)
  • South Africa's 96.5 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 26.85, 3.6× the median. (48 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 82.33 76.9 87.9 10
2010s 92.59 89 95.2 10
2020s 96.12 95.7 96.5 4

Countries ranked near South Africa

  1. 95 Tuvalu 97.2 compare
  2. 96 Dominican Republic 96.9 compare
  3. 97 Uzbekistan 96.8 compare
  4. 98 Jamaica 96.5 compare
  5. 98 Venezuela 96.5 compare
  6. 101 Gabon 96.1 compare

See the full ranking of 189 places →

More population data for South Africa

All data for South Africa →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of the rural and urban population with access to clean fuels in South Africa?
Share of the rural and urban population with access to clean fuels in South Africa was 96.5 in 2023, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of the rural and urban population with access to clean fuels recorded in South Africa?
The highest recorded value was 96.5 in 2023.
What is the lowest share of the rural and urban population with access to clean fuels recorded in South Africa?
The lowest recorded value was 76.9 in 2000.
How does South Africa rank for share of the rural and urban population with access to clean fuels?
South Africa ranks 98th out of 189 countries with data for 2023.
Is share of the rural and urban population with access to clean fuels rising or falling in South Africa?
Over the last ten years it is up 5.2%. 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 Share of the rural and urban population with access to clean fuels for cooking. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Share of the rural and urban population with access to clean fuels in South Africa. Statizoid, drawing on Our World in Data. Retrieved 11 November 2026, from https://population.statizoid.com/stat/share-of-the-rural-and-urban-population-with-access-to-clean-fuels-for-cooking/south-africa/

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About this data

Indicator
Share of the rural and urban population with access to clean fuels for cooking
Source
Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
189 places, 4,536 data points, 2000–2023
Last refreshed