A Solid Foundation of Trust
South Africa is building its data future step by step. Today, the country’s overall data maturity stands at 55%. This shows steady development, but not yet full national integration.
The strongest pillar is legal trust. The Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) provides clear rules for data protection, giving the country around 80% maturity in legal readiness. Organisations and citizens operate within a defined framework of rights and responsibilities.
Digital Government in Action
Digital public services are advancing. Public sector digitisation has reached 60–65% maturity.
SARS enables 100% online tax filing, Statistics South Africa operates a fully functional national data portal, and eHomeAffairs continues to expand digital civic services. Major cities also manage open data hubs.
Overall portal performance is estimated at 60% maturity, reflecting reliable systems but limited integration.
Breaking the Silos
Despite progress, many systems still operate independently. Cross-sector interoperability stands at about 50%. Fully federated dataspaces remain at an early stage, below 30% maturity.
The next challenge is connecting these systems securely and efficiently.
The Role of MzansiXchange
MzansiXchange represents the bridge to a more connected future. As a national data exchange layer, it aims to enable trusted sharing between public and private sectors, support interoperability, and strengthen Digital Public Infrastructure. Its development stage is currently 40–50% maturity.
Sector Snapshot
Progress differs by sector:
Public Services lead at 65%, Health at 55%, Energy and Agriculture at 50%, Mobility at 45%, and Manufacturing at 40%.
The Next Chapter
South Africa has strong legal foundations and growing digital capacity. The next step is clear: moving from separate systems towards secure, interoperable dataspaces that create real economic and social value.
Sources
- Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA)
https://www.gov.za/documents/protection-personal-information-act-4-2013 - National Data & Cloud Policy (2024)
https://www.gov.za/sites/default/files/gcis_document/202406/50741gen2533.pdf - Public Service Data Governance Framework (DPSA, 2025)
https://www.dpsa.gov.za/dpsa2g/documents/km/2025/Public%20Service%20Data%20Governance%20Framework.pdf - Information Regulator South Africa
https://inforegulator.org.za - National Health Insurance (NHI) Policy https://www.health.gov.za/nhi
- Department of Transport https://www.transport.gov.za
- eNaTIS https://www.enatis.com
- Department of Trade, Industry & Competition https://www.thedtic.gov.za
