Adequacy of benefits (%) - Contributory Pensions -urban in South Africa

South Africa: Adequacy of benefits (%) - Contributory Pensions -urban was 50.2% in 2021. ▲ Rising

Latest (2021)
50.2%
Change on year
down 15.3%
World rank
10th
of 34 countries
All-time high
73.8%
in 2019
All-time low
38.7%
in 2005
Years of data
7
2005–2021

Adequacy of benefits (%) - Contributory Pensions -urban in South Africa, 2005–2021

0204060802005201320212005: 38.72014: 43.62016: 60.12018: 53.12019: 73.82020: 59.32021: 50.2

Source: ASPIRE.

Analysis

South Africa recorded 50.2% for adequacy of benefits (%) - contributory pensions -urban in 2021.

That represents a change of down 15.3% on the previous year and up 15.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, adequacy of benefits (%) - contributory pensions -urban in South Africa peaked at 73.8% in 2019 and was at its lowest, 38.7%, in 2005.

South Africa ranks 10th of 34 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

Adequacy of benefits (%) - Contributory Pensions -urban in South Africa, year by year

Annual values for Adequacy of benefits (%) - Contributory Pensions -urban in South Africa, 2005 to 2021.
Year Value Change
2005 38.7%
2014 43.6% +12.6%
2016 60.1% +37.8%
2018 53.1% -11.6%
2019 73.8% +39.0%
2020 59.3% -19.7%
2021 50.2% -15.3%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 38.7% 38.7% 38.7% 1
2010s 57.7% 43.6% 73.8% 4
2020s 54.7% 50.2% 59.3% 2

Countries ranked near South Africa

  1. 7 Republic of Moldova 56.5% compare
  2. 8 Uruguay 52.3% compare
  3. 9 Ukraine 50.9% compare
  4. 11 Türkiye 49.6% compare
  5. 12 Mongolia 47.8% compare
  6. 13 Kyrgyzstan 47.4% compare

See the full ranking of 34 places →

More reference data data for South Africa

All data for South Africa →

Frequently asked questions

What is adequacy of benefits (%) - contributory pensions -urban in South Africa?
Adequacy of benefits (%) - contributory pensions -urban in South Africa was 50.2% in 2021, according to ASPIRE.
What is the highest adequacy of benefits (%) - contributory pensions -urban recorded in South Africa?
The highest recorded value was 73.8% in 2019.
What is the lowest adequacy of benefits (%) - contributory pensions -urban recorded in South Africa?
The lowest recorded value was 38.7% in 2005.
How does South Africa rank for adequacy of benefits (%) - contributory pensions -urban?
South Africa ranks 10th out of 34 countries with data for 2021.
Is adequacy of benefits (%) - contributory pensions -urban rising or falling in South Africa?
Over the last ten years it is up 15.1%. 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 (%) - Contributory Pensions -urban. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 7 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 (%) - Contributory Pensions -urban in South Africa. Statizoid, drawing on ASPIRE. Retrieved 30 August 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/adequacy-of-benefits-percent-contributory-pensions-urban/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://reference.statizoid.com/stat/adequacy-of-benefits-percent-contributory-pensions-urban/south-africa/">Adequacy of benefits (%) - Contributory Pensions -urban in South Africa</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Adequacy of benefits (%) - Contributory Pensions -urban
Source
ASPIRE
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
34 places, 347 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