South Africa’s population was estimated on Tuesday at 47,9 million by the official statistics agency.
“The mid-year 2007 population is estimated at 47,9 million compared to the October 1991 census figure of 44,8 million,” Statistics South Africa said in a statement.
 Population growth had slowed to 6.4 percent in the five years since 2001, compared to 10.4 percent in the previous five years.
“The easing has been due to slowing annual growth rates which in 2006/7 was estimated at just 0,97 percent from 1,25 percent in 2001/2.”
South Africa has the second highest number of people with HIV/AIDS in the world, after India, with some 5.5 million people thought to be living with the virus.
Black South Africans constitute 80 percent of the total population, of which about 51 percent are female, the agency said.