Beneficiary incidence in 2nd quintile (%) - All Social Assistance in South Africa

South Africa: Beneficiary incidence in 2nd quintile (%) - All Social Assistance was 25.0% in 2021. ▼ Falling

Latest (2021)
25.0%
Change on year
up 3.3%
World rank
12th
of 39 countries
All-time high
28.9%
in 2005
All-time low
23.0%
in 2019
Years of data
8
2005–2021

Beneficiary incidence in 2nd quintile (%) - All Social Assistance in South Africa, 2005–2021

01020302005201320212005: 28.9 preT2010: 26.8 preT2014: 24.2 preT2016: 25.1 preT2018: 24.9 preT2019: 23 preT2020: 24.2 preT2021: 25 preT

Source: ASPIRE. Measured in preT.

Analysis

In 2021, beneficiary incidence in 2nd quintile (%) - all social assistance in South Africa stood at 25.0%.

The figure is up 3.3% on the previous year and down 7.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, beneficiary incidence in 2nd quintile (%) - all social assistance in South Africa peaked at 28.9% in 2005 and was at its lowest, 23.0%, in 2019.

That places South Africa 12th out of 39 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the middle of the range.

Beneficiary incidence in 2nd quintile (%) - All Social Assistance in South Africa, year by year

Annual values for Beneficiary incidence in 2nd quintile (%) - All Social Assistance (preT) in South Africa, 2005 to 2021.
Year preT Change
2005 28.9%
2010 26.8% -7.3%
2014 24.2% -9.8%
2016 25.1% +3.8%
2018 24.9% -0.8%
2019 23.0% -7.6%
2020 24.2% +5.0%
2021 25.0% +3.3%

South Africa compared with similar countries

  • South Africa's 25.0% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 23.4%, 1.1× the median. (25 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 28.9% 28.9% 28.9% 1
2010s 24.8% 23.0% 26.8% 5
2020s 24.6% 24.2% 25.0% 2

Countries ranked near South Africa

  1. 9 Dominican Republic 25.6% compare
  2. 10 Republic of Moldova 25.4% compare
  3. 11 Türkiye 25.0% compare
  4. 13 Honduras 24.6% compare
  5. 14 Georgia 24.4% compare
  6. 15 Kazakhstan 24.1% compare

See the full ranking of 39 places →

More work & labour data for South Africa

All data for South Africa →

Frequently asked questions

What is beneficiary incidence in 2nd quintile (%) - all social assistance in South Africa?
Beneficiary incidence in 2nd quintile (%) - all social assistance in South Africa was 25.0% in 2021, according to ASPIRE.
What is the highest beneficiary incidence in 2nd quintile (%) - all social assistance recorded in South Africa?
The highest recorded value was 28.9% in 2005.
What is the lowest beneficiary incidence in 2nd quintile (%) - all social assistance recorded in South Africa?
The lowest recorded value was 23.0% in 2019.
How does South Africa rank for beneficiary incidence in 2nd quintile (%) - all social assistance?
South Africa ranks 12th out of 39 countries with data for 2021.
Is beneficiary incidence in 2nd quintile (%) - all social assistance rising or falling in South Africa?
Over the last ten years it is down 7.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this South Africa data come from?
The figures come from ASPIRE, published as part of Beneficiary incidence in 2nd quintile (%) - All Social Assistance (preT). 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

Beneficiary incidence in 2nd quintile (%) - All Social Assistance in South Africa. Statizoid, drawing on ASPIRE. Retrieved 15 September 2026, from https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/beneficiary-incidence-in-2nd-quintile-percent-all-social-assistance-pret/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/beneficiary-incidence-in-2nd-quintile-percent-all-social-assistance-pret/south-africa/">Beneficiary incidence in 2nd quintile (%) - All Social Assistance in South Africa</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Beneficiary incidence in 2nd quintile (%) - All Social Assistance (preT)
Unit
preT
Source
ASPIRE
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
39 places, 390 data points, 2002–2023
Last refreshed

Percentage of program beneficiaries in a quintile relative to the total number of beneficiaries in the population