These are the top causes of death in South Africa in 2023

2026-03-25 - 14:10

South Africa recorded almost 500 000 deaths in 2023, a decrease from the previous year. The numbers show a continuing recovery from the devastating Covid pandemic in 2021, according to Statistics South Africa’s latest Mortality and Causes of Death report. The data is drawn from the country’s civil registration system and reflects, according to Stats SA, “deaths collected through the South African civil registration system maintained by the Department of Home Affairs”. Diabetes tops the list According to StasSA, the country recorded 476 751 deaths in 2023, down from 492 417 in 2022. This follows the Covid peak of 623 135 deaths in 2021. Diabetes mellitus claimed the most lives in 2023, responsible for 5.8% of all deaths, followed by cerebrovascular diseases at 5.4% and hypertensive diseases at 5.2%. Together, the top three causes were all non-communicable, pointing to a structural shift in how South Africans die. Nearly 60% of all deaths in 2023 were attributed to non-communicable diseases, while communicable diseases accounted for just 27%. Stats SA noted that cause of death information is captured “as it was recorded on death notification forms completed by medical practitioners and other certifying officials,” meaning the figures reflect real clinical encounters across the country. ALSO READ: World Obesity Day: Hidden habits driving South Africa’s weight crisis, according to experts Men die younger and more violently than women Males accounted for 53.5% of all deaths in 2023, the widest recorded gender gap in the data series. For men, tuberculosis was the leading killer at 5.1% of male deaths, while diabetes led among women at 7.5%. The data reveals a stark pattern of violence skewing male mortality. Among men aged 15-29, 59.1% of deaths resulted from non-natural causes, compared to 24.1% of women in the same age group. Stats SA confirmed that overall, “differentials by sex show higher proportions of non-natural deaths for males at 19.6% compared to 5.9% of female non-natural deaths”. Gauteng leads in deaths, but KZN is the most violent Gauteng recorded the highest share of deaths at 21.2%, followed by KwaZulu-Natal at 18.3% and the Eastern Cape at 16.4%. Limpopo followed at 9.6%, with the Western Cape at 12.2%, Mpumalanga at 6.4%, North West at 6.5%, Free State at 6.0% and Northern Cape recording the lowest share of deaths at 3.2%. KwaZulu-Natal recorded the highest proportion of non-natural deaths at 15.1%, with Stats SA noting the province “has consistently been the province with the highest proportion of non-natural deaths in the previous years”. On non-natural deaths specifically, Gauteng recorded 14.4% and Eastern Cape 14.2%, while Mpumalanga came in at 13.8%. North West recorded 11.1%, the Western Cape 13.0% and Free State 10.8%. Northern Cape sat at 10.9% and Limpopo recorded the lowest proportion of non-natural deaths in the country at 9.9%. Stats SA attributes the persistently high violence figures in certain provinces to deaths that were “not adequately classified”, cautioning that the true scale of violent deaths may be higher than reported. Despite improvements, 18.8% of 2023 deaths were still attributed to ill-defined causes, which Stats SA warns makes it “impossible to monitor, evaluate, or compare disease trends over time”. The agency added that this “creates a distorted view of the health status of a population, often masking the true, leading causes of death”. READ NEXT: Prof Glenda Gray: On the front line battling pandemics