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Sub-region of Africa · Country Index 2026

Southern Africa

How are the countries of Southern Africa doing?

Half of Southern Africa’s 5 placed countries sit at or above 116th of 178 in the Country Index 2026, which places the region 17th of 21 sub-regions. South Africa is placed highest, 102nd; Eswatini lowest, joint 140th. None reaches the world’s top fifth.

Southern AfricaUN M49 018

Southern Africa, shown in red on a map of the world

116th

median position of 178 · 17th of 21 sub-regions

Africa →median 143rd

01Who is in it

The countries of Southern Africa

Alphabetical, with each country’s own banner photograph. The position is its place in the whole world ranking, never within the region.

02The region

About Southern Africa

The continent's southern tip: South Africa and its four neighbours.

Southern Africa is the southern tip of the continent: South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, and the kingdoms of Lesotho and Eswatini. Its landscapes run from the Namib and Kalahari deserts in the west to the Drakensberg mountains and the subtropical east coast, and to the southern coast where the Atlantic and Indian Oceans meet.

The region has been home to San and Khoekhoe peoples for thousands of years and to Bantu-speaking farmers for many centuries. European settlement from the seventeenth century and the discovery of diamonds and gold shaped its modern history, and apartheid in South Africa ended in the early 1990s. Its economies are closely linked through a customs union that is among the oldest in the world.

03Where

Southern Africa on the map

Each member shaded by its position in the Country Index 2026, darkest for the best placed; the countries across its land borders in grey. Hover a country for its position, or select it to open its profile.

Country Index position: 1st178thMember, not placedAcross the border, another regionNot a country this site tracks

04Country Index 2026

Where Southern Africa’s countries place

Best placed first. Every position is a place in the whole world ranking of 178, never a second list within the region; “=” marks a position shared with another country. Hover the ⓘ for where a country would sit if any one key statistic were dropped.

The full Country Index 2026
Southern Africa’s 5 placed countries by their Country Index 2026 position, best placed first.
In regionCountryIn the world1st178th
1South Africa102 / 178between 91st and 110th if any one key were dropped · standings on 16 of 16 topics
2Namibia108 / 178between 104th and 115th if any one key were dropped · standings on 16 of 16 topics
3Botswana116 / 178between 111th and 125th if any one key were dropped · standings on 14 of 16 topics
4Lesotho132 / 178between 126th and 139th if any one key were dropped · standings on 14 of 16 topics
5Eswatini140 / 178between 135th and 144th if any one key were dropped · standings on 15 of 16 topics

Southern Africa among the 21 sub-regions with a median

17th of 21. Nothing is weighted by population or size.

  1. Northern Europe6thPlaced countries run from Denmark 2nd to Latvia 25th.
  2. Western Europe10thPlaced countries run from Switzerland 1st to France 19th.
  3. Australia and New Zealand17thPlaced countries run from New Zealand 17th to Australia 24th.
  4. Northern America17thPlaced countries run from Canada 17th to United States 37th.
  5. Eastern Asia23rdPlaced countries run from South Korea 14th to Mongolia 73rd.
  6. Southern Europe32ndPlaced countries run from Slovenia 12th to Bosnia and Herzegovina 63rd.
  7. Eastern Europe39thPlaced countries run from Czechia 11th to Russia 68th.
  8. Polynesia70thPlaced countries run from Samoa 70th to Tonga 85th.
  9. South America74thPlaced countries run from Uruguay 34th to Venezuela 137th.
  10. Caribbean78thPlaced countries run from Barbados 63rd to Haiti 169th.
  11. Central America81stPlaced countries run from Costa Rica 40th to Nicaragua 134th.
  12. Western Asia93rdPlaced countries run from Cyprus 35th to Yemen 176th.
  13. South-eastern Asia95thPlaced countries run from Singapore 26th to Myanmar 153rd.
  14. Central Asia100thPlaced countries run from Kazakhstan 60th to Turkmenistan 148th.
  15. Southern Asia100thPlaced countries run from Bhutan 44th to Afghanistan 172nd.
  16. Melanesia106thPlaced countries run from Fiji 62nd to Papua New Guinea 138th.
  17. Southern Africa116thPlaced countries run from South Africa 102nd to Eswatini 140th.
  18. Northern Africa127thPlaced countries run from Tunisia 107th to Libya 174th.
  19. Eastern Africa143rdPlaced countries run from Mauritius 46th to Somalia 177th.
  20. Western Africa144thPlaced countries run from Cabo Verde 74th to Guinea-Bissau 168th.
  21. Middle Africa161stPlaced countries run from São Tomé and Príncipe 104th to Chad 175th.
  22. Micronesia—
  23. Africa, the whole continent143rd
  24. The world’s midpoint88th
1st178thmedian

The square is each region’s median position; the grey bar runs from its best-placed to its lowest-placed country. Hover a row for their names.

05By subject

Topic by topic

Every country’s position on each topic, its shade darker the higher it sits in that topic’s field; select a cell for the country’s page on the topic. Strongest for Southern Africa: Environment & Sustainability, 7th of 21 sub-regions. Weakest: Poverty & Inequality, 21st of 21.

All topics
Southern Africa: each country’s position on each topic, with the region’s median and its place among sub-regions.
Environment & SustainabilityMobility & TradeEnergyPeace & SecurityDemocracy & Civil LibertiesGovernance & InstitutionsGender & EqualityRisk & ResilienceEducation & KnowledgeEconomy & InnovationDigital & TechnologyFood & AgricultureDevelopment & Human CapitalHealth & WellbeingWork & LabourPoverty & InequalityMoney & Public FinancePeople & Population
South Africa158 of 18145 of 147166 of 19372 of 17770 of 19854 of 19439 of 183125 of 19266 of 171101 of 17666 of 19890 of 175116 of 196148 of 200134 of 182147 of 159No standingNo standing
Namibia14 of 18195 of 14749 of 19349 of 17759 of 19884 of 19469 of 183133 of 19299 of 171100 of 176117 of 198162 of 175129 of 196175 of 200157 of 182150 of 159No standingNo standing
Botswana63 of 181No standing186 of 19352 of 17764 of 19865 of 194121 of 18371 of 192No standing105 of 176115 of 19896 of 175143 of 196160 of 200162 of 182149 of 159No standingNo standing
Lesotho32 of 181No standingNo standing57 of 17792 of 198115 of 19479 of 18393 of 192114 of 171132 of 176159 of 198136 of 175178 of 196194 of 200140 of 182152 of 159No standingNo standing
Eswatini93 of 181No standing62 of 193114 of 177178 of 198156 of 194136 of 18390 of 19281 of 171112 of 176133 of 19899 of 175130 of 196165 of 200174 of 182157 of 159No standingNo standing
Region median63rd of 18145th of 14762nd of 19357th of 17770th of 19884th of 19479th of 18393rd of 19281st of 171105th of 176117th of 19899th of 175130th of 196165th of 200157th of 182150th of 159——
Among sub-regions7th of 217th of 218th of 228th of 2010th of 2210th of 2212th of 2112th of 2213th of 2114th of 2116th of 2216th of 2117th of 2220th of 2220th of 2121st of 21——

Columns run from the topic where Southern Africa places best among sub-regions to the one where it places lowest. A region’s median on a topic needs at least two members with a standing; a hatched cell has no standing.

06In numbers

Southern Africa in 6 numbers

Each line is every country in the world at its published value; Southern Africa’s countries are the red ticks, and the dashed line is the world median. There is no regional average: a region has countries, not a life expectancy of its own.

All statistics

  • Population

    people · log scale

    UN DESA Population Division · 2023 · 222 countries · no better end

    EswatiniLesothoBotswanaNamibiaSouth Africa496world median 6,541,4131,438,069,596

  • Land area

    km²

    FAO · 2024 · 221 countries · no better end

    EswatiniLesothoBotswanaNamibia0.4world median 87,58916,376,870

  • GDP per person

    international $, PPP · log scale

    World Bank Group · 2025 · 185 countries · higher is better

    LesothoNamibiaEswatiniSouth AfricaBotswana1,067world median 17,265139,593

  • Life expectancy

    years at birth

    UN DESA Population Division · 2023 · 222 countries · higher is better

    LesothoEswatiniSouth AfricaNamibiaBotswana54.46world median 74.6386.37

  • Human development

    HDI, 0–1

    UNDP Human Development Report Office · 2023 · 193 countries · higher is better

    LesothoNamibiaEswatiniBotswanaSouth Africa0.388world median 0.7620.972

  • Unemployment

    % of the labour force

    ILO · 2025 · 182 countries · lower is better

    LesothoNamibiaBotswanaSouth AfricaEswatini0.13world median 5.08434.2
Every value for Southern Africa’s countries
CountryPopulation 2023Land area 2024GDP per person 2025Life expectancy 2023Human development 2023Unemployment 2025
Botswana2,480,244rank 146566,730rank 4717,687rank 9269.16rank 1630.731rank 11124.48rank 4
Eswatini1,230,506rank 16017,200rank 15510,707rank 12164.12rank 1970.695rank 12634.2rank 1
Lesotho2,311,472rank 14730,360rank 1372,721rank 17157.37rank 2200.55rank 16716.32rank 13
Namibia2,963,095rank 139823,290rank 3310,242rank 12367.38rank 1740.665rank 13619.29rank 7
South Africa63,212,384rank 241,213,090rank 2413,592rank 10966.14rank 1870.741rank 10632.39rank 2

07In records

Southern Africa in records

The member at the extreme of each statistic, read from its newest edition. Where two members share the top, no record is named.

08Latest editions

Who rose and fell in the published ranks

The moves of Southern Africa’s countries between each report’s two newest editions, in the publisher’s own ranks. A report whose field changed by more than 5% is left out.

Ranks as published by UNDP Human Development Report Office in the Human Development Index: reference years 2022 (192 countries ranked) → 2023 (193 ranked), both from its 2025 report.

Improved most

rank before → after
  1. South Africa107 → 106+1
  2. Botswana112 → 111+1
  3. Namibia137 → 136+1

Declined most

rank before → after

No country moved this way.

Every country in the Human Development Index

09In context

Across the border

The countries outside Southern Africa that share a land border with one of its members, with their world positions, and the sub-regions they belong to. Land borders only, as drawn on the map.

Middle Africa

The neighbouring sub-regions

10Keep reading

Explore further

All regions

The rest of Africa

11Method

Questions, method and sources

Which countries are in Southern Africa?

5 countries and territories: Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Namibia and South Africa. Membership follows the United Nations’ M49 classification.

Which country in Southern Africa is placed highest?

South Africa, placed 102nd of 178 in the Country Index 2026. Eswatini is placed lowest, joint 140th. 5 of the region’s 5 countries and territories are placed; the rest hold standings on too few topics.

How does Southern Africa compare with other regions?

Half of its 5 placed countries sit at or above 116th of 178, which places it 17th of 21 sub-regions. The median across Africa is 143rd. The middle of the whole field is 88th. Nothing is weighted by population or size.

How many people live in Southern Africa?

72,197,701 in 2023, the sum of the UN DESA Population Division’s figures for its 5 countries and territories.

What is the largest country in Southern Africa?

By land area, South Africa: 1,213,090 square kilometres (2024). By population, South Africa: 63,212,384 people (2023).

How a region’s figure is made
  1. Membership. Countries belong to regions by the United Nations’ M49 classification; each country declares its sub-region, and a continent is the sum of its sub-regions.
  2. Positions. Each country’s position is its Country Index 2026 result, unchanged. This page slices the world ranking by place; it does not re-rank anyone.
  3. The median. A region’s figure is the median of its placed countries’ positions: half sit at or above it, half below. With an even number of placed countries it takes the better of the two middle positions, since there is no country at a half place. Countries the index does not place are named, never counted in.
  4. A place among peers. Continents are compared with continents and sub-regions with sub-regions, never a part with the whole that contains it; regions sharing a median share a place. Nothing is weighted by population or size, and population and land area are the only figures ever added up.

Where the regions come from

United Nations Statistics Division, Standard country or area codes for statistical use (M49). M49’s middle level (Sub-Saharan Africa; Latin America and the Caribbean) is left out, so every sub-region sits directly under its continent. Kosovo, Northern Cyprus and Somaliland are not in M49 and are placed by geography.

Where the positions come from

Every position is a country’s result in the Country Index 2026 or one of its topics, unchanged. The population and land-area figures are the UN DESA Population Division’s and the FAO’s, added up and shown with their year; every other statistic names its publisher beside its numbers.

Photographs

Each country’s own banner from its profile: Wikimedia Commons, shown in greyscale, each used under the licence named.

Cite this page

Nations Inquiry (2026). Southern Africa: countries, population and rankings, Country Index 2026. https://nationsinquiry.com/regions/southern-africa

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