Scientific and technical journal articles in South Africa

South Africa: Scientific and technical journal articles was 14,949 in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
14,949
Change on year
down 5.9%
World rank
33rd
of 198 countries
All-time high
15,881
in 2022
All-time low
3,924
in 1997
Years of data
28
1996–2023

Scientific and technical journal articles in South Africa, 1996–2023

5.0k7.5k10.0k12.5k15.0k1996200920231996: 3.9k1997: 3.9k1998: 4.0k1999: 4.0k2000: 4.0k2001: 4.2k2002: 4.5k2003: 4.4k2004: 4.9k2005: 5.2k2006: 5.8k2007: 6.0k2008: 6.3k2009: 7.1k2010: 7.6k2011: 8.2k2012: 8.9k2013: 9.5k2014: 10.1k2015: 10.9k2016: 12.0k2017: 12.8k2018: 13.2k2019: 14.7k2020: 15.3k2021: 15.5k2022: 15.9k2023: 14.9k

Source: Science and Engineering Indicators, National Science Foundation (NSF).

Analysis

In 2023, scientific and technical journal articles in South Africa stood at 14,949.

That represents a change of down 5.9% on the previous year and up 56.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, scientific and technical journal articles in South Africa peaked at 15,881 in 2022 and was at its lowest, 3,924, in 1997.

South Africa ranks 33rd of 198 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 28 years of available data.

Scientific and technical journal articles in South Africa, year by year

Annual values for Scientific and technical journal articles in South Africa, 1996 to 2023.
Year Value Change
1996 3,925
1997 3,924 -0.0%
1998 4,005 +2.0%
1999 4,045 +1.0%
2000 3,965 -2.0%
2001 4,157 +4.8%
2002 4,482 +7.8%
2003 4,353 -2.9%
2004 4,943 +13.6%
2005 5,247 +6.1%
2006 5,816 +10.8%
2007 5,972 +2.7%
2008 6,337 +6.1%
2009 7,118 +12.3%
2010 7,577 +6.5%
2011 8,241 +8.8%
2012 8,947 +8.6%
2013 9,548 +6.7%
2014 10,087 +5.6%
2015 10,889 +7.9%
2016 11,955 +9.8%
2017 12,810 +7.1%
2018 13,232 +3.3%
2019 14,690 +11.0%
2020 15,309 +4.2%
2021 15,478 +1.1%
2022 15,881 +2.6%
2023 14,949 -5.9%

South Africa compared with similar countries

  • South Africa's 14,949 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 495.34, 30.2× the median. (59 countries reporting)
  • South Africa's 14,949 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 143.91, 103.9× the median. (48 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 3,975 3,924 4,045 4
2000s 5,239 3,965 7,118 10
2010s 10,798 7,577 14,690 10
2020s 15,404 14,949 15,881 4

Countries ranked near South Africa

  1. 30 Thailand 16,656 compare
  2. 31 Denmark 15,603 compare
  3. 32 Ukraine 15,498 compare
  4. 34 Austria 13,846 compare
  5. 35 Israel 13,844 compare
  6. 36 Norway 13,756 compare

See the full ranking of 245 places →

More science & technology data for South Africa

All data for South Africa →

Frequently asked questions

What is scientific and technical journal articles in South Africa?
Scientific and technical journal articles in South Africa was 14,949 in 2023, according to Science and Engineering Indicators, National Science Foundation (NSF).
What is the highest scientific and technical journal articles recorded in South Africa?
The highest recorded value was 15,881 in 2022.
What is the lowest scientific and technical journal articles recorded in South Africa?
The lowest recorded value was 3,924 in 1997.
How does South Africa rank for scientific and technical journal articles?
South Africa ranks 33rd out of 198 countries with data for 2023.
Is scientific and technical journal articles rising or falling in South Africa?
Over the last ten years it is up 56.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this South Africa data come from?
The figures come from Science and Engineering Indicators, National Science Foundation (NSF), published as part of Scientific and technical journal articles. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 28 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Scientific and technical journal articles in South Africa. Statizoid, drawing on Science and Engineering Indicators, National Science Foundation (NSF). Retrieved 24 September 2026, from https://science-tech.statizoid.com/stat/scientific-and-technical-journal-articles/south-africa/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://science-tech.statizoid.com/stat/scientific-and-technical-journal-articles/south-africa/">Scientific and technical journal articles in South Africa</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Scientific and technical journal articles
Source
Science and Engineering Indicators, National Science Foundation (NSF)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
245 places, 6,860 data points, 1996–2023
Last refreshed

Article counts refer to publications from a selection of conference proceedings and peer-reviewed journals from Scopus in science and engineering fields, according to the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics Taxonomy of Disciplines.