It all started with the Pieter Faure. This relatively small, unassuming ship, built in Scotland, laid the foundation for the development of South Africa’s commercial, ocean fishing industry as we know it today. John Gilchrist might not have guessed the extent of the contribution he would make when he boarded the Pieter Faure in 1897.   read more »

According to the Tourism, 2020 report released by Statistics South Africa, foreign arrivals dropped by 71% from just over 15, 8million in 2019 to less than 5 million in 2020. It is evident that the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the tourism industry quite hard around the world and in South Africa, mainly due to the lockdown   read more »

Education inflation recorded its lowest annual rate in three decades, according to data from Stats SA’s latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) release. Stats SA surveys educational institutions and crèches once a year in March. Education fees increased by 4,1% in 2021. Last year’s rise was 6,4%. Historical data shows that this is the lowest increase   read more »

For many of us who are fortunate enough, things just work. Turn on a tap, and water flows. Flip a switch, and there is light. We often take for granted the extremely complex system that provides us with services every day. Local government is a vital cog in this system. South Africa’s 257 municipalities are   read more »

Headline inflation slowed to 2,9% in February from 3,2% in January, the lowest reading since June last year when the rate was 2,2%. This is the third time in the past 12 months that the annual rate has slipped below the bottom end of the South African Reserve Bank’s inflation target range. Inflation was below   read more »

SESSION 1: Opening African countries lead on natural capital accounting (video) Interview: Dr. Salman Hussain (The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) Coordinator) Interview: Dr. Bram Edens (Senior Statistician, UNSD) Interview: Raul de Luzenberger (Deputy Head of the Delegation, European Union to South Africa) Interview: Mandy Driver : Senior Biodiversity Policy Advisor, SANBI Interview: Joe   read more »

South Africa is at the forefront of a global movement on Natural Capital Accounting (NCA). Statistics South Africa (Stats SA), in partnership with the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI), hosted the first National NCA Forum in Pretoria at Stats SA’s IsiBalo House from 10 to 11 July 2019. NCA is a practical tool to   read more »

Single ladies, if you’re wondering why your man hasn’t proposed yet, perhaps he’s waiting to turn 37? According to a report released by Statistics South Africa (Stats SA), Marriages and Divorces, 2019, the median age of bridegrooms increased from 36 years in 2015 to 37 years in 2019. Similarly, the age of brides increased from   read more »

On 14 February 2021, the rand was turning 60 years. The rand was first introduced as a South African currency on 14 February 1961, the year South Africa became a republic and Queen Elizabeth ceased to be head of state. The rand takes its name from the Witwatersrand – the ridge on which Johannesburg is   read more »

If you work with gross domestic product (GDP) data or have an interest in economic statistics, the following note might be important to you. Stats SA announced in its most recent GDP statistical release1 that it will no longer use the annualised rate as the headline rate of change. There are several measures of economic   read more »