Coverage of essential health services in South Africa
South Africa: Coverage of essential health services was 74 in 2023. ▲ Rising
Coverage of essential health services in South Africa, 2000–2023
Source: Universal Health Coverage Dataset, WHO, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 74 for coverage of essential health services in 2023.
That represents a change of down 1.3% on the previous year and up 13.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, coverage of essential health services in South Africa peaked at 75 in 2022 and was at its lowest, 54, in 2000.
South Africa ranks 85th of 193 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.
Coverage of essential health services in South Africa, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 54 | — |
| 2001 | 54 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 55 | +1.9% |
| 2003 | 56 | +1.8% |
| 2004 | 57 | +1.8% |
| 2005 | 58 | +1.8% |
| 2006 | 59 | +1.7% |
| 2007 | 60 | +1.7% |
| 2008 | 61 | +1.7% |
| 2009 | 62 | +1.6% |
| 2010 | 63 | +1.6% |
| 2011 | 64 | +1.6% |
| 2012 | 65 | +1.6% |
| 2013 | 65 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 67 | +3.1% |
| 2015 | 68 | +1.5% |
| 2016 | 68 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 68 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 67 | -1.5% |
| 2019 | 67 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 68 | +1.5% |
| 2021 | 72 | +5.9% |
| 2022 | 75 | +4.2% |
| 2023 | 74 | -1.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 57.6 | 54 | 62 | 10 |
| 2010s | 66.2 | 63 | 68 | 10 |
| 2020s | 72.25 | 68 | 75 | 4 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
- 85 Jamaica 74 compare
- 85 Jordan 74 compare
- 85 Kyrgyzstan 74 compare
- 85 San Marino 74 compare
- 85 Suriname 74 compare
More health data for South Africa
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -2.2 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate -0.1386 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 1,152 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 3,333 deaths (2100)
- Total tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 22 (2025)
- Total tetanus - number of reported cases, per capita 0 units per person (2025)
- Diphtheria - number of reported cases, gaps filled 314 (2025)
- Diphtheria - number of reported cases, per capita 0 units per person (2025)
- Measles - number of reported cases, gaps filled 2,778 (2025)
- Measles - number of reported cases, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is coverage of essential health services in South Africa?
- Coverage of essential health services in South Africa was 74 in 2023, according to Universal Health Coverage Dataset, WHO, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest coverage of essential health services recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 75 in 2022.
- What is the lowest coverage of essential health services recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 54 in 2000.
- How does South Africa rank for coverage of essential health services?
- South Africa ranks 85th out of 193 countries with data for 2023.
- Is coverage of essential health services rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 13.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Universal Health Coverage Dataset, WHO, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Coverage of essential health services. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Coverage of essential health services is measured as an index on a scale of 0 to 100 (where higher is better). This index is based on risk-standardized death rates – which give a measure of healthcare access and quality – and whether common interventions are carried out.