Diabetes, hypertension and cerebrovascular disease were the country’s leading recorded causes of death in 2024, as non-communicable diseases accounted for 60.7% of fatalities.
South Africa’s latest mortality figures show diabetes, hypertension and strokes at the top of the country’s death toll, underscoring how non-communicable diseases have become the dominant threat to public health, according to Statistics South Africa’s 2024 report on deaths recorded through notification forms. The agency said 474,366 deaths were registered last year, and chronic diseases accounted for more than 60% of them, the highest share recorded since 1997.
Diabetes mellitus was listed as the leading underlying cause of death, accounting for 6.1% of all registered deaths. Hypertensive diseases followed at 5.5%, while cerebrovascular diseases, which include strokes, accounted for 5.4%. Statistics South Africa said the pattern reflects a long-term shift in the country’s mortality profile away from communicable diseases and towards chronic conditions.
The change is stark when set against earlier years. According to the agency, communicable diseases made up 45.6% of deaths in 2003, but that figure had fallen to 26% by 2024. Over the same period, deaths from non-communicable diseases rose from 44.9% to 60.7%. The report also shows that cardiovascular diseases, a category that includes hypertensive disease, cerebrovascular disease, other forms of heart disease and ischaemic heart disease, accounted for 17.8% of all deaths in 2024, close to the 10-year average of 17.9%.
The burden was not evenly spread across the population. Statistics South Africa found that tuberculosis remained the leading cause of death among men, at 4.8%, while diabetes was the leading cause among women, at 7.9%. The report also said diabetes was the top cause of death among people aged 45 to 64, while hypertensive disease led among those 65 and older. In KwaZulu-Natal, diabetes was also the leading underlying cause of death, accounting for 7% of deaths in the province.
Officials cautioned that the figures may still be updated as late registrations and additional death notification forms are processed. Even so, the latest data reinforce a wider public health reality: South Africa is increasingly being shaped by chronic illness, with diabetes, high blood pressure and stroke now among the country’s deadliest conditions.
Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical judgment, advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
