South Africa Tension Score
building record · 49 days on fileLive 0–100 tension reading for South Africa, built by our own engine from 19,188 world headlines in the last 30 days. Refreshed every 10 minutes; a fresh headline count twice a day.
Where South Africa stands
#90 of 197 countries today, #20 of 53 in Africa (region score 64). Tension is easing this week.
Same 0–100 scale and zones as the World Tension Index.
South Africa news pulse
60 headlines in 30 days · newest firstEvery story the engine read that names South Africa, its capital or its leaders. Links go to the original outlet; the badge is the engine’s own 0–100 tension weight. This list is what moves the number above.
What is driving South Africa’s tension score
last 30 days- 139 headlines in 30 days — 0.72% of everything the engine read, in line with the previous 30 days (106).
- 18% of those were violent (attacks, strikes, casualties) and 11% scored as high-tension stories.
- Conflicts on the roster: none. South Africa is not a party to any conflict our engine tracks right now.
- Region: Africa reads 64 today; it carries 15% of this score.
Read it like this. Attention (how much the world is talking about South Africa) is the biggest input at 30%. Violence and high-tension share tell you what kind of talk it is. A country can be loud and calm — an election, a summit — or quiet and dangerous. The mix is the point.
South Africa tension month by month
average score, headline counts| Month | Avg score | Zone | Headlines | Violent | Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 2026 | 19.0 | Calm | 32 | 5 | 5 |
| October 2026 | 27.9 | Calm | 120 | 23 | 31 |
| September 2026 | 23.4 | Calm | 93 | 47 | 13 |
Record for South Africa began on 18 September 2026. Nothing is revised after the fact.
How the South Africa score is built
Five inputs, fixed weights. Attention 30% (share of world coverage), violence 25% and high-tension share 15% (what kind of coverage), roster conflicts 15%, and the Africa region score 15%. A momentum nudge (+6 / −4) rewards a country whose coverage is accelerating or fading.
Same physics as the world score. The number rises 85% of the way to its new level at once and falls no faster than 3 points a day — fear arrives fast and leaves slowly.
No third-party index inside. Every count comes from the 41 public news feeds our engine reads itself; the full method is on the methodology page. Data is free under CC BY 4.0 via the API.
Questions people ask about South Africa
Is South Africa in a war right now?
Not on our roster. South Africa is not a party to any tracked conflict; the engine flags new candidates automatically when coverage repeats.
Is tension in South Africa rising or falling?
Easing: down 6 points in 7 days.
How does South Africa compare with the rest of Africa?
Below its region: South Africa reads 19 against 64 for Africa, ranking #20 of 53 there.
Keep exploring
Same region
Sudan 54 · South Sudan 44 · Somalia 36 · Ethiopia 35 · Eritrea 34 · Nigeria 31
The bigger picture
All countries on the map · Africa · World Tension Index · active conflicts · escalation watchlist
South Africa and world tension: the long view
evergreen · World Tension Meter teamThe continent’s most connected economy. South Africa is a G20 member, a BRICS founder and the legal voice that took Israel to the world court. Its rand and its power cuts are global-market stories; its diplomacy sits between Washington, Beijing and Moscow.
What our engine watches in South Africa
- Rand moves and power grid failures
- Diplomatic clashes with the United States and Israel
- Coalition politics and unrest
Indexes to follow: Currency Stress · Gold & Silver Fear · Market Fear.