Share of global CO₂ emissions and population in South Africa
South Africa: Share of global CO₂ emissions and population was 0.9% in 2100. ◆ Volatile
Share of global CO₂ emissions and population in South Africa, 1000–2100
Source: HYDE (2023); Gapminder (2022); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 0.9% for share of global co₂ emissions and population in 2100. That is the highest value across all 318 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.3% on the previous year and up 3.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of global co₂ emissions and population in South Africa peaked at 0.9% in 2100 and was at its lowest, 0.1%, in 1790.
South Africa ranks 25th of 234 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1000s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1100s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1200s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1300s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1400s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1500s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1600s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1700s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1710s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1720s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1730s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1740s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1750s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1760s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1770s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1780s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1790s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1800s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 10 |
| 1810s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 10 |
| 1820s | 0.2% | 0.1% | 0.2% | 10 |
| 1830s | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 10 |
| 1840s | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 10 |
| 1850s | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.3% | 10 |
| 1860s | 0.3% | 0.3% | 0.3% | 10 |
| 1870s | 0.3% | 0.3% | 0.3% | 10 |
| 1880s | 0.3% | 0.3% | 0.3% | 10 |
| 1890s | 0.3% | 0.3% | 0.3% | 10 |
| 1900s | 0.3% | 0.3% | 0.3% | 10 |
| 1910s | 0.4% | 0.3% | 0.4% | 10 |
| 1920s | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.4% | 10 |
| 1930s | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.5% | 10 |
| 1940s | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.5% | 10 |
| 1950s | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.5% | 10 |
| 1960s | 0.6% | 0.5% | 0.6% | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.6% | 0.6% | 0.7% | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.7% | 0.7% | 0.8% | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.8% | 0.8% | 0.8% | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.8% | 0.7% | 0.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.8% | 0.7% | 0.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.8% | 0.8% | 0.8% | 10 |
| 2030s | 0.8% | 0.8% | 0.8% | 10 |
| 2040s | 0.8% | 0.8% | 0.8% | 10 |
| 2050s | 0.8% | 0.8% | 0.8% | 10 |
| 2060s | 0.8% | 0.8% | 0.9% | 10 |
| 2070s | 0.9% | 0.9% | 0.9% | 10 |
| 2080s | 0.9% | 0.9% | 0.9% | 10 |
| 2090s | 0.9% | 0.9% | 0.9% | 10 |
| 2100s | 0.9% | 0.9% | 0.9% | 1 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More climate change data for South Africa
- Population growth 1.1% (2025)
- Population, total 64.75 million (2025)
- Urban population growth 1.3% (2025)
- Urban population 41.32 million (2025)
- Urban population 63.8% (2025)
- CO₂ emissions per capita vs. GDP per capita 6.87 tonnes per person (2024)
- Cumulative CO₂ emissions 22.83 billion tonnes (2024)
- CO₂ emissions per capita 6.87 tonnes per person (2024)
- CO₂ emissions per capita vs. share of electricity generation from renewables 6.87 tonnes per person (2024)
- Share of global CO₂ emissions vs. share of population 1.1% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of global co₂ emissions and population in South Africa?
- Share of global co₂ emissions and population in South Africa was 0.9% in 2100, according to HYDE (2023); Gapminder (2022); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of global co₂ emissions and population recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 0.9% in 2100.
- What is the lowest share of global co₂ emissions and population recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.1% in 1790.
- How does South Africa rank for share of global co₂ emissions and population?
- South Africa ranks 25th out of 234 countries with data for 2100.
- Is share of global co₂ emissions and population rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from HYDE (2023); Gapminder (2022); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of global CO₂ emissions and population. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 318 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of the world's population by country, available from 10,000 BCE to 2100, based on data and estimates from different sources.