Western Cape

Western Cape
Motto: 
Spes Bona (Latin: Good Hope)
Map showing the location of the Western Cape in the south-western part of South Africa
Map showing the location of the Western Cape in the south-western part of South Africa in red
Coordinates: 34°S 20°E / 34°S 20°E / -34; 20
Country South Africa
Established27 April 1994 (1994-04-27)
CapitalCape Town
Municipalities
Government
 • TypeParliamentary system
 • PremierAlan Winde (DA)
 • LegislatureWestern Cape Provincial Parliament
Area
[1]: 9 
 • Total
129,462 km2 (49,986 sq mi)
 • Rank4th in South Africa
Highest elevation
2,325 m (7,628 ft)
Lowest elevation
0 m (0 ft)
Population
 (2022)
 • Total
7,433,020
 • Rank3rd in South Africa
 • Density57/km2 (150/sq mi)
  • Rank4th in South Africa
Population groups (2022)
 • Coloured42.1%
 • Black38.8%
 • White16.4%
 • Indian or Asian1.1%
Languages (2022)
 • Afrikaans41.2%
 • Xhosa31.4%
 • English22.0%
Time zoneUTC+2 (SAST)
ISO 3166 codeZA-WC
GDP (2023)Increase R656.27 billion[4] (US$56.3 billion[5])
HDI (2021)0.751[6]
high · 1st of 9
Gini (2010)Positive decrease 0.58 [7]
high
Websitewww.westerncape.gov.za
Western Cape
XhosaiNtshona-Koloni
AfrikaansWes-Kaap
SepediKapa Bodikela
SesothoKapa Bophirimela
SetswanaKapa Bophirima
XitsongaKapa Vupela-dyambu
VendaKapa Vhukovhela

The Western Cape (Afrikaans: Wes-Kaap [ˈvɛskɑːp]; Xhosa: iNtshona-Koloni) is a province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of 129,449 square kilometres (49,981 sq mi), and the third most populous, with an estimated 7 million inhabitants in 2020.[8] About two-thirds of these inhabitants live in the metropolitan area of Cape Town, which is also the provincial capital. The Western Cape was created in 1994 from part of the former Cape Province. The two largest cities are Cape Town and George.

  1. ^ Census 2011: Census in brief (PDF). Pretoria: Statistics South Africa. 2012. ISBN 9780621413885.
  2. ^ Census 2022:Statistical Release. Pretoria: Statistics South Africa. 2022.
  3. ^ "Census 2022: Statistical Release" (PDF). statssa.gov.za. 10 October 2023. p. 6. Retrieved 12 October 2023.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference i003 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ "Provincial gross domestic product:experimental estimates, 2013–2022" (PDF), www.statssa.gov.za
  6. ^ "Sub-national HDI – Area Database – Global Data Lab". hdi.globaldatalab.org. Retrieved 15 May 2024.
  7. ^ "Regional Development Profile City of Cape Town" (PDF). Western Cape Government. 2011. Retrieved 18 September 2015.
  8. ^ Statistics South Africa, 2020. Mid- year population estimates. Available: http://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/P0302/P03022020.pdf