Access to clean fuels for cooking vs. GDP per capita in South Africa
South Africa: Access to clean fuels for cooking vs. GDP per capita was 90.0% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Access to clean fuels for cooking vs. GDP per capita in South Africa, 2000–2024
Source: World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 90.0% for access to clean fuels for cooking vs. gdp per capita in 2024. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
The figure is up 8.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, access to clean fuels for cooking vs. gdp per capita in South Africa peaked at 90.0% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 57.0%, in 2000.
South Africa ranks 106th of 194 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
Access to clean fuels for cooking vs. GDP per capita in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 57.0% | — |
| 2001 | 59.0% | +3.5% |
| 2002 | 61.0% | +3.4% |
| 2003 | 63.0% | +3.3% |
| 2004 | 65.0% | +3.2% |
| 2005 | 68.0% | +4.6% |
| 2006 | 70.0% | +2.9% |
| 2007 | 72.0% | +2.9% |
| 2008 | 74.0% | +2.8% |
| 2009 | 76.0% | +2.7% |
| 2010 | 77.0% | +1.3% |
| 2011 | 79.0% | +2.6% |
| 2012 | 80.0% | +1.3% |
| 2013 | 82.0% | +2.5% |
| 2014 | 83.0% | +1.2% |
| 2015 | 84.0% | +1.2% |
| 2016 | 85.0% | +1.2% |
| 2017 | 86.0% | +1.2% |
| 2018 | 87.0% | +1.2% |
| 2019 | 87.0% | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 88.0% | +1.1% |
| 2021 | 89.0% | +1.1% |
| 2022 | 89.0% | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 90.0% | +1.1% |
| 2024 | 90.0% | +0.0% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 90.0% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 93.0%, 97% of the median. (58 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 90.0% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 13.0%, 6.9× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 66.5% | 57.0% | 76.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 83.0% | 77.0% | 87.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 89.2% | 88.0% | 90.0% | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More economy & growth data for South Africa
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 0.4836 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 1.4 Percent per annum (2029)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, annual growth rate 6.87 % change on previous year (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0145 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per capita 95.75 units per person (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, annual growth rate 1.77 % change on previous year (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per unit of GDP 0.0106 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per capita 69.91 units per person (2025)
- IMF holdings of currency, US dollar, annual growth rate -28.9 % change on previous year (2025)
- IMF holdings of currency, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0077 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is access to clean fuels for cooking vs. gdp per capita in South Africa?
- Access to clean fuels for cooking vs. gdp per capita in South Africa was 90.0% in 2024, according to World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest access to clean fuels for cooking vs. gdp per capita recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 90.0% in 2023.
- What is the lowest access to clean fuels for cooking vs. gdp per capita recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 57.0% in 2000.
- How does South Africa rank for access to clean fuels for cooking vs. gdp per capita?
- South Africa ranks 106th out of 194 countries with data for 2024.
- Is access to clean fuels for cooking vs. gdp per capita rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Access to clean fuels for cooking vs. GDP per capita. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Access to clean fuels for cooking is vital in reducing the burden of health and mortality impacts of indoor air pollution. GDP per capita is adjusted for inflation and differences in living costs between countries.