South Africans have greater access to electricity, sanitation, water and internet services than two decades ago, but rising food insecurity and worsening water interruptions remain major concerns.
This is according to the 2025 General Household Survey (GHS), released recently by Statistics South Africa.
The report found that access to improved sanitation increased from 61,7% in 2002 to 84,0% in 2025, while electricity access rose from 76,7% to 90,6% over the same period.
Stats SA said access to piped water also improved over time, with 87,4% of households now having access to municipal piped water. However, the survey highlighted growing pressure on water infrastructure and service delivery.
More than a third (37,6%) of households experienced water interruptions lasting longer than two days or at least 15 days in total during the past year — up sharply from 24,3% in 2012.
Around 22% of households relied on municipal water tankers during prolonged interruptions, while 4,5% turned to unsafe water sources such as rivers, streams, dams and pools.
The survey further revealed that close to nine out of 10 households (85,6%) now have some form of internet access, while traditional postal services continue to decline. More than two-thirds (67,4%) of households reported no access to postal services.
Food insecurity, however, has worsened since before the COVID-19 pandemic. Just over one-fifth (22%) of households described their access to food as inadequate or severely inadequate, up from 17,8% in 2019.
The need was highest in the Northern Cape at 43%, while Limpopo recorded the lowest level at 6,1%.
The report also highlighted changing family structures in South Africa. Less than a third (31,4%) of children lived with both biological parents in 2025, while 45,9% lived only with their mothers. Nearly one in five children (18,5%) lived with neither parent.
Female-headed households made up 42,6% of all households nationally, increasing to 47,6% in rural areas.
Education indicators showed long-term improvement. The percentage of adults with no schooling dropped from 11,4% in 2002 to 2,6% in 2025, while those with at least a Grade 12 qualification increased from about 30% to more than 52%. Participation in early childhood development (ECD) programmes remained uneven, with only 36,3% of children aged between 0 and 4 attending ECD facilities. More than half of children in this age group were cared for at home.
Medical aid coverage remained largely unchanged at 15,5%, reflecting continued inequality in access to private healthcare. The Western Cape recorded the highest medical aid coverage at 25,9%, followed by Gauteng at 22,1%.
Social grants continued to play a major role in household survival. Grants reached 39,5% of individuals and 50,6% of households in 2025, while nearly a quarter of households relied on grants as their main source of income.
Stats SA said the survey tracks development trends across the country and covers areas including education, health, housing, food security, agriculture and basic household services.
One in five households face food insecurity in South Africa
Statistician-General and Head of Stats SA, Risenga Maluleke. Photo supplied.