Source: Willem Petzer

Only 16% of South Africans identify with the country, most identify with their own group

14 Jan 2026

The idea of the Rainbow Nation, that all different nations in South Africa can unite to form one South African nation, is dead in the water. Only 16% of the country now identify as South African, down from 76% in 2011. In tonight’s stream, we analyse why this shift happened.