Pertussis - number of reported cases in South Africa
South Africa: Pertussis - number of reported cases was 5,666 in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Pertussis - number of reported cases in South Africa, 1996–2025
Source: World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 5,666 for pertussis - number of reported cases in 2025. That is the highest value across all 23 years on record.
That represents a change of up 7,072.1% on the previous year and up 5,401.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, pertussis - number of reported cases in South Africa peaked at 5,666 in 2025 and was at its lowest, 4, in 2009.
That places South Africa 10th out of 210 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Pertussis - number of reported cases in South Africa, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 14 | — |
| 1997 | 23 | +64.3% |
| 1998 | 39 | +69.6% |
| 1999 | 34 | -12.8% |
| 2000 | 8 | -76.5% |
| 2001 | 24 | +200.0% |
| 2002 | 5 | -79.2% |
| 2003 | 8 | +60.0% |
| 2009 | 4 | -50.0% |
| 2011 | 181 | +4425.0% |
| 2013 | 116 | -35.9% |
| 2014 | 230 | +98.3% |
| 2015 | 103 | -55.2% |
| 2016 | 40 | -61.2% |
| 2017 | 102 | +155.0% |
| 2018 | 955 | +836.3% |
| 2019 | 557 | -41.7% |
| 2020 | 104 | -81.3% |
| 2021 | 557 | +435.6% |
| 2022 | 789 | +41.7% |
| 2023 | 268 | -66.0% |
| 2024 | 79 | -70.5% |
| 2025 | 5,666 | +7072.2% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 5,666 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 18, 314.8× the median. (57 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Pertussis - number of reported cases 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | +7072.2% | 79 | 5,666 |
| 2011 | +4425.0% | 4 | 181 |
| 2018 | +836.3% | 102 | 955 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 27.5 | 14 | 39 | 4 |
| 2000s | 9.8 | 4 | 24 | 5 |
| 2010s | 285.5 | 40 | 955 | 8 |
| 2020s | 1,244 | 79 | 5,666 | 6 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
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)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 0 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate -0.5504 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per capita 0.045 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 0.0003 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is pertussis - number of reported cases in South Africa?
- Pertussis - number of reported cases in South Africa was 5,666 in 2025, according to World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory.
- What is the highest pertussis - number of reported cases recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 5,666 in 2025.
- What is the lowest pertussis - number of reported cases recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 4 in 2009.
- How does South Africa rank for pertussis - number of reported cases?
- South Africa ranks 10th out of 210 countries with data for 2025.
- Is pertussis - number of reported cases rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 5,401.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory, published as part of Pertussis - number of reported cases. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 23 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (WHO).