Share of global CO₂ emissions vs. share of population in South Africa
South Africa: Share of global CO₂ emissions vs. share of population was 1.1% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
1.1%
Change on year
down 0.6%
World rank
15th
of 215 countries
All-time high
1.6%
in 1984
All-time low
0.0%
in 1884
Years of data
141
1884–2024
Share of global CO₂ emissions vs. share of population in South Africa, 1884–2024
Source: Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of global co₂ emissions vs. share of population in South Africa is 1.1%, measured in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.6% on the previous year and down 16.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of global co₂ emissions vs. share of population in South Africa peaked at 1.6% in 1984 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1884.
That places South Africa 15th out of 215 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 141 years of available data.
Share of global CO₂ emissions vs. share of population in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1884 | 0.0% | — |
| 1885 | 0.0% | +65.4% |
| 1886 | 0.0% | +28.0% |
| 1887 | 0.0% | -4.7% |
| 1888 | 0.0% | +52.7% |
| 1889 | 0.0% | +63.5% |
| 1890 | 0.0% | +106.9% |
| 1891 | 0.0% | -4.6% |
| 1892 | 0.0% | +60.4% |
| 1893 | 0.1% | +279.6% |
| 1894 | 0.2% | +30.5% |
| 1895 | 0.2% | +29.5% |
| 1896 | 0.3% | +23.5% |
| 1897 | 0.3% | +7.2% |
| 1898 | 0.4% | +20.0% |
| 1899 | 0.3% | -16.5% |
| 1900 | 0.1% | -59.9% |
| 1901 | 0.2% | +62.6% |
| 1902 | 0.3% | +45.3% |
| 1903 | 0.3% | +22.5% |
| 1904 | 0.4% | +11.4% |
| 1905 | 0.4% | +7.3% |
| 1906 | 0.4% | +9.5% |
| 1907 | 0.4% | -3.2% |
| 1908 | 0.5% | +7.0% |
| 1909 | 0.5% | +10.5% |
| 1910 | 0.6% | +8.1% |
| 1911 | 0.5% | -5.2% |
| 1912 | 0.5% | +1.1% |
| 1913 | 0.5% | +1.0% |
| 1914 | 0.6% | +6.8% |
| 1915 | 0.6% | +2.2% |
| 1916 | 0.6% | +9.1% |
| 1917 | 0.7% | +2.3% |
| 1918 | 0.6% | -3.4% |
| 1919 | 0.8% | +20.0% |
| 1920 | 0.7% | -4.9% |
| 1921 | 0.8% | +12.7% |
| 1922 | 0.7% | -18.2% |
| 1923 | 0.7% | +7.0% |
| 1924 | 0.7% | +4.7% |
| 1925 | 0.8% | +3.6% |
| 1926 | 0.8% | +6.9% |
| 1927 | 0.7% | -11.0% |
| 1928 | 0.7% | +0.6% |
| 1929 | 0.7% | -3.2% |
| 1930 | 0.7% | +1.1% |
| 1931 | 0.7% | -0.5% |
| 1932 | 0.7% | +1.7% |
| 1933 | 0.8% | +2.5% |
| 1934 | 0.8% | +4.8% |
| 1935 | 0.8% | +6.2% |
| 1936 | 0.8% | -0.1% |
| 1937 | 0.8% | -2.3% |
| 1938 | 0.9% | +11.8% |
| 1939 | 0.9% | -1.8% |
| 1940 | 0.8% | -5.4% |
| 1941 | 0.9% | +4.3% |
| 1942 | 1.0% | +9.6% |
| 1943 | 1.0% | -1.1% |
| 1944 | 1.1% | +10.0% |
| 1945 | 1.3% | +23.2% |
| 1946 | 1.2% | -6.6% |
| 1947 | 1.1% | -11.1% |
| 1948 | 1.0% | -3.0% |
| 1949 | 1.2% | +11.1% |
| 1950 | 1.0% | -11.8% |
| 1951 | 1.0% | -0.7% |
| 1952 | 1.1% | +7.4% |
| 1953 | 1.1% | -2.6% |
| 1954 | 1.1% | +2.0% |
| 1955 | 1.1% | +2.4% |
| 1956 | 1.1% | -1.2% |
| 1957 | 1.1% | -0.5% |
| 1958 | 1.1% | +4.4% |
| 1959 | 1.1% | -6.7% |
| 1960 | 1.0% | -2.3% |
| 1961 | 1.1% | +4.1% |
| 1962 | 1.1% | -0.1% |
| 1963 | 1.1% | -1.4% |
| 1964 | 1.1% | +3.3% |
| 1965 | 1.1% | +2.6% |
| 1966 | 1.1% | -4.6% |
| 1967 | 1.1% | +1.1% |
| 1968 | 1.1% | -2.2% |
| 1969 | 1.0% | -2.7% |
| 1970 | 1.0% | -3.5% |
| 1971 | 1.1% | +8.2% |
| 1972 | 1.1% | -2.7% |
| 1973 | 1.0% | -4.0% |
| 1974 | 1.0% | +2.3% |
| 1975 | 1.1% | +4.8% |
| 1976 | 1.1% | -0.8% |
| 1977 | 1.1% | +0.7% |
| 1978 | 1.1% | -2.5% |
| 1979 | 1.1% | +5.6% |
| 1980 | 1.2% | +4.9% |
| 1981 | 1.4% | +15.8% |
| 1982 | 1.5% | +10.0% |
| 1983 | 1.5% | +3.1% |
| 1984 | 1.6% | +5.0% |
| 1985 | 1.6% | -0.9% |
| 1986 | 1.6% | +0.6% |
| 1987 | 1.6% | -3.7% |
| 1988 | 1.6% | +0.4% |
| 1989 | 1.5% | -1.8% |
| 1990 | 1.4% | -10.3% |
| 1991 | 1.4% | +2.1% |
| 1992 | 1.3% | -4.8% |
| 1993 | 1.4% | +5.2% |
| 1994 | 1.5% | +4.7% |
| 1995 | 1.5% | +4.3% |
| 1996 | 1.5% | -2.4% |
| 1997 | 1.6% | +5.3% |
| 1998 | 1.6% | -1.7% |
| 1999 | 1.5% | -2.8% |
| 2000 | 1.5% | -1.7% |
| 2001 | 1.4% | -2.5% |
| 2002 | 1.4% | -6.2% |
| 2003 | 1.5% | +7.7% |
| 2004 | 1.6% | +7.4% |
| 2005 | 1.4% | -10.5% |
| 2006 | 1.5% | +3.8% |
| 2007 | 1.5% | +1.1% |
| 2008 | 1.5% | +4.5% |
| 2009 | 1.5% | -2.4% |
| 2010 | 1.4% | -6.8% |
| 2011 | 1.4% | -1.9% |
| 2012 | 1.3% | -4.0% |
| 2013 | 1.3% | -2.0% |
| 2014 | 1.4% | +5.0% |
| 2015 | 1.3% | -4.9% |
| 2016 | 1.3% | -0.1% |
| 2017 | 1.2% | -5.3% |
| 2018 | 1.2% | +1.0% |
| 2019 | 1.3% | +2.8% |
| 2020 | 1.2% | -2.5% |
| 2021 | 1.2% | -3.7% |
| 2022 | 1.1% | -4.1% |
| 2023 | 1.1% | +0.3% |
| 2024 | 1.1% | -0.6% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 1.1% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.1%, 21.6× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 1.1% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.0%, 88.7× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of global CO₂ emissions vs. share of population in South Africa changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1893 | +279.6% | 0.0% | 0.1% |
| 1890 | +106.9% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| 1885 | +65.4% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| 1889 | +63.5% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| 1900 | -59.9% | 0.3% | 0.1% |
| 1901 | +62.6% | 0.1% | 0.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 6 |
| 1890s | 0.2% | 0.0% | 0.4% | 10 |
| 1900s | 0.4% | 0.1% | 0.5% | 10 |
| 1910s | 0.6% | 0.5% | 0.8% | 10 |
| 1920s | 0.7% | 0.7% | 0.8% | 10 |
| 1930s | 0.8% | 0.7% | 0.9% | 10 |
| 1940s | 1.1% | 0.8% | 1.3% | 10 |
| 1950s | 1.1% | 1.0% | 1.1% | 10 |
| 1960s | 1.1% | 1.0% | 1.1% | 10 |
| 1970s | 1.1% | 1.0% | 1.1% | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.5% | 1.2% | 1.6% | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.5% | 1.3% | 1.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.5% | 1.4% | 1.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.3% | 1.2% | 1.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.2% | 1.1% | 1.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More climate change data for South Africa
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Synthetic fertilizers (Agricultural) 717.27 million kg (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 34,365 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 11,741 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 22,624 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 44.31 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 807.99 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 5,495 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 5,119 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 376.6 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 19.32 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of global co₂ emissions vs. share of population in South Africa?
- Share of global co₂ emissions vs. share of population in South Africa was 1.1% in 2024, according to Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of global co₂ emissions vs. share of population recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 1.6% in 1984.
- What is the lowest share of global co₂ emissions vs. share of population recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1884.
- How does South Africa rank for share of global co₂ emissions vs. share of population?
- South Africa ranks 15th out of 215 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of global co₂ emissions vs. share of population rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 16.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of global CO₂ emissions vs. share of population. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 141 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Annual total emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂), excluding land-use change, measured as a percentage of global emissions of CO₂ in the same year.