Sample Project Background- South Africa

The project background is an important part of every proposal. It can be very similar to the project rationale or the project justification. It shows your donor that you did your homework and that your project is planned well. But where can you get the information and data for your project background? And how does one actually look like?

Here you have an example project background for South Africa that you can use as a blueprint. You can copy it and adjust it for your own purposes.

You are welcome to use this blueprint of a project background of South Africa. Be sure to add more specific information about your own project through and add other relevant data according to the region and place.

Project Background of South Africa

South Africa lies on the southern tip of the African continent; it is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean on the west and the Indian Ocean on the south and east. Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe are the neighbouring countries in the northern border and similarly to the northeast are Mozambique and Swaziland. South Africa is the geographically diverse country with landscapes that range from the rolling fertile plains of the Highveld and beautiful open Savanna with varieties of animals and birds.

South Africa is a democratic state and is based on the constitution. Until 1994, the country had the system of apartheid, the institutionalised racial segregation and discrimination against black people. While the country had high promises and relatively high living standards, since then it has not been able to live up to the expectations. HIV/Aids rates are high, and poverty and unemployment are a huge problem.

According to the CIA World Factbook, the total number of population in South Africa is 54,841,552 and a population density is 46.176 per sq. km.

More than half of the population around 66.4% of the population is living in urban areas. The fertility rate of the nation is 2.29 births per woman.

The ratio of child mortality is 31 per 1000 live births. Similarly, the ratio of maternal mortality is 138 per 100,000 live births. About 27.6% of the population is still living below the poverty line. The literacy rate is 94.4% with 13 years of schooling on average. About 8.7% of children under 5 years are suffering from malnutrition. The life expectancy is only 63.8 years.

The annual growth of South Africa remained 4.5% percent from 2002 to 2008. Poverty and income inequality have become a major challenge for the smooth development of the nation. The GDP of South Africa is counted as $757.3 billion where agriculture only contributes 2.8% of GDP and industry contributes 29.7%. Services contribute 67.5% to the GDP.

According to Transparency International Organisation, South Africa remains one of the most corrupt countries ranking 71 among 180 countries in the entire world. In the UNDP Human Development Reports, South Africa ranks 119th, with high gender inequality.

The World Health Organization reports that more than 18.9% of adults are suffering from HIV/AIDS which is a severe situation. About 7.1 million people are living with the disease and about 110,000 deaths were recorded in 2016.

If you are looking for more information, please check the websites of  OECD, World Bank or the UN.

Unless otherwise indicated,  the data was retrieved from the CIA World Factbook.

Country: South Africa

Source: CIA World Factbook (unless otherwise indicated)

Demographics

• Population: 54,841,552
• Density: 46.754 per sq.km. (2016) (World Bank)
• Area (Rural/ Urban) –  33.6% Vs. 66.4%
• Under poverty line: 16.6%

Education

• Literacy rate- 94.4%
• Average years of schooling- 13 years
• Average years of schooling male vs. female- 12/13

Health

• Average life expectancy- 63.8 years
• Child mortality – 31 deaths/1,000 live births
• Maternal mortality- 138 deaths/100,000 live births
• Stunting/Malnourishment in children- 8.7%
• Fertility rate – 2.29 children born/woman

Economy

• Most important sectors- Agriculture, Oil, and Mining
• GDP – $757.3 billion
• Unemployment rate- 27.6%

Ecology

• % of the forested area- 7.6 %(CIA World Factbook.)
• Number of National Parks-21 National parks – National Parks

Other:

• Human Development Index– 0.666
• Corruption Rank– 71/180
• Ease of Doing Business–  82 among 190 countries

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