Adequacy of benefits in 3rd quintile (%) -All Social Protection and in South Africa

South Africa: Adequacy of benefits in 3rd quintile (%) -All Social Protection and was 69.4% in 2021. ▲ Rising

Latest (2021)
69.4%
Change on year
up 23.7%
World rank
2nd
of 36 countries
All-time high
124.7%
in 2018
All-time low
34.0%
in 2016
Years of data
8
2005–2021

Adequacy of benefits in 3rd quintile (%) -All Social Protection and in South Africa, 2005–2021

4060801001202005201320212005: 562010: 43.72014: 68.32016: 342018: 124.72019: 48.92020: 56.12021: 69.4

Source: ASPIRE.

Analysis

In 2021, adequacy of benefits in 3rd quintile (%) -all social protection and in South Africa stood at 69.4%.

That represents a change of up 23.7% on the previous year and up 58.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, adequacy of benefits in 3rd quintile (%) -all social protection and in South Africa peaked at 124.7% in 2018 and was at its lowest, 34.0%, in 2016.

That places South Africa 2nd out of 36 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the top 10%.

Adequacy of benefits in 3rd quintile (%) -All Social Protection and in South Africa, year by year

Annual values for Adequacy of benefits in 3rd quintile (%) -All Social Protection and Labor -rural in South Africa, 2005 to 2021.
Year Value Change
2005 56.0%
2010 43.7% -21.9%
2014 68.3% +56.2%
2016 34.0% -50.2%
2018 124.7% +266.7%
2019 48.9% -60.8%
2020 56.1% +14.8%
2021 69.4% +23.7%

South Africa compared with similar countries

  • South Africa's 69.4% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 28.0%, 2.5× the median. (23 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 56.0% 56.0% 56.0% 1
2010s 63.9% 34.0% 124.7% 5
2020s 62.8% 56.1% 69.4% 2

Countries ranked near South Africa

  1. 1 Belarus 74.7% compare
  2. 3 Poland 65.7% compare
  3. 4 Romania 61.0% compare
  4. 5 Serbia 55.6% compare

See the full ranking of 36 places →

More work & labour data for South Africa

All data for South Africa →

Frequently asked questions

What is adequacy of benefits in 3rd quintile (%) -all social protection and in South Africa?
Adequacy of benefits in 3rd quintile (%) -all social protection and in South Africa was 69.4% in 2021, according to ASPIRE.
What is the highest adequacy of benefits in 3rd quintile (%) -all social protection and recorded in South Africa?
The highest recorded value was 124.7% in 2018.
What is the lowest adequacy of benefits in 3rd quintile (%) -all social protection and recorded in South Africa?
The lowest recorded value was 34.0% in 2016.
How does South Africa rank for adequacy of benefits in 3rd quintile (%) -all social protection and?
South Africa ranks 2nd out of 36 countries with data for 2021.
Is adequacy of benefits in 3rd quintile (%) -all social protection and rising or falling in South Africa?
Over the last ten years it is up 58.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this South Africa data come from?
The figures come from ASPIRE, published as part of Adequacy of benefits in 3rd quintile (%) -All Social Protection and Labor -rural. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 8 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Adequacy of benefits in 3rd quintile (%) -All Social Protection and in South Africa. Statizoid, drawing on ASPIRE. Retrieved 17 September 2026, from https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/adequacy-of-benefits-in-3rd-quintile-percent-all-social-protection-and-labor-rural/south-africa/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/adequacy-of-benefits-in-3rd-quintile-percent-all-social-protection-and-labor-rural/south-africa/">Adequacy of benefits in 3rd quintile (%) -All Social Protection and in South Africa</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Adequacy of benefits in 3rd quintile (%) -All Social Protection and Labor -rural
Source
ASPIRE
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
36 places, 352 data points, 2002–2023
Last refreshed

Total transfer amount received by all beneficiaries in a population group as a share of the total welfare of beneficiaries in that group