Datasets

The GCRO holds a wide variety of datasets (spatialised data and survey data) as part of our own internal 'data warehouse'. Given that stakeholders, students, and the general public regularly approach the GCRO with their data needs, we aim to make as much of our data easily accessible. This GCRO Data Portal provides easy access to commonly requested datasets, which are available for direct download on this page (where applicable). Some links send the ‘data seeker’ to landing and menu pages where the direct download link is located and in some instances would require a quick registration. This data portal will be updated and expanded over time when new datasets become available.

Quality of Life Survey data

GCRO’s primary dataset is the biennial Quality of Life survey (QoL), which measures the quality of life, socio-economic circumstances, attitudes to service delivery, psycho-social attitudes, value-base, and other characteristics of the GCR.

Questionnaires, data, and documentation for our most recent survey (QoL 2023/24), as well as previous surveys (2009, 2011, 2013/14, 2015/16, 2017/18 & QoL 2020/21), are available for download through DataFirst: https://www.datafirst.uct.ac.za/dataportal/index.php/catalog/GCRO.

Our data is shared under a CC SA-BY 4.0 license, meaning that it is free for use. We ask that the data be cited using the citation provided on the DataFirst website and that you share a copy of the work produced with us if possible.

Data from QoL 2013/14, 2011, and 2009 can be accessed via the Quality of Life survey data viewer. QoL 2017/18, 2020/21, and 2023/24 can also be viewed on the GCRO Quality of Life survey viewer.

You are welcome to contact the GCRO if you would like to discuss any aspect of the data or its use in more detail.

Gauteng Administrative Boundary data

• Ward boundaries
  • Source: Municipal Demarcation Board
  • Download 2016 ward boundaries
  • Download 2020 ward boundaries
• Local municipality boundaries
  • Source: Municipal Demarcation Board
  • Download 2018 local municipality boundaries
• Planning Region boundaries
  • Source: Gauteng City Metros and local district municipalities
  • Download planning region boundaries
• Enumerator Area (EA) boundaries
  • Source: Statistics South Africa
  • Download 2011 EA boundaries
• Main place boundaries
  • Source: Statistics South Africa
  • Download the 2011 Main place boundaries
• Sub-place boundaries
  • Source: Statistics South Africa
  • Download the 2011 Sub-place boundaries
• Provincial boundary
  • Source: Municipal Demarcation Board
  • Download the Gauteng Provincial boundary
• Former Bantustan Homelands and Traditional/Tribal land boundaries
  • Description: This shapefile outlines the boundaries of the Transkei, Bophuthatswana, Venda, and Ciskei (TBVC) independent homelands created by the Apartheid government (pre 1994)
  • Source: Department of Land Affairs, SA (2007)
  • Download the former Bantustan Homeland boundaries
• StepSA National Mesozone boundaries
  • Description: This layer is a unique spatially equal (in size) unit to enable comparison across geographies in South Africa. Some attributes include an indicator of economic production per sector and population estimates.
  • Source: Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)
  • Download the mesozone boundaries
• Health District boundaries
  • Source: Gauteng Department of Health
  • Download the Gauteng Health District boundaries
• National Police Precinct boundaries
  • Source: South African Police Service (SAPS)
  • Download the national police precinct boundaries
• Uber H3_7 Hexagons
  • Description: Uber hexagons (H3) were developed for optimising ride pricing and dispatch and for visualising and exploring spatial datasets. This grid works well with the Spatial Economic Activity (SEAD) Data Portal (https://spatialtaxdata.org.za/)
  • Source: Uber
  • Download the Uber H3_7 hexagon boundaries

Public infrastructure data

• National Roads Line Shapefiles
  • Source: Open Street Map (OSM)
  • Download the national roads line shapefiles
• National Railway Line Shapefiles
  • Source: Open Street Map (OSM)
  • Download the national railway line shapefiles
• National Rivers Line Shapefiles (1: 500 000)
  • Source: Department of Water Affairs (DWA)
  • Download the national rivers line shapefiles (1: 500 000)
• Healthcare Facilities Point Shapefiles
  • Source: Open Street Map (OSM)
  • Access South Africa Health Facilities data here
• Department of Education School location Point Shapefiles
  • Source: Department of Basic Education, South Africa
  • Access various school master lists here

South Africa Land Use Land Cover and Urban Footprint data

• 2016 20m European Space Agency (ESA) Land Cover
  • Description: This is a land cover classification data of Africa was created using 180 000 Copernicus Sentinel-2A images captured between December 2015 and December 2016
  • Source: European Space Agency
  • Download the ESA Land Cover raster image
• 1990, 2014, 2018, 2020 and 2022 South African National Land Cover (SANLC) Data
  • Description: These are multi-year national land cover and land use raster datasets created from historic Landsat (30m for 1990 and 2014) and Sentinel-2 (20m for 2018, 2020 and 2022).
  • Source: Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, SA
  • Download the SANLC Raster Image for the various years
• 2019 German Aerospace Center (DLR) World Settlement Footprint (WSF) 3D
  • Description: WSF 3D raster products provide detailed quantification of the average height, total volume, total area and the fraction of buildings at 90 m resolution at a global scale. These products are derived from multitemporal Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 imagery.
  • Source: German Aerospace Center (DLR)
  • Download global WSF 3D raster datasets
• Multi-year Global Human Settlement Layer (GHSL)
  • Description: GHSL raster datasets provide some of the most accurate, detailed, consistent, and accessible geospatial datasets on human presence and settlements worldwide. Products include urban footprint coverage and other related datasets from 1990 and into the future (2030)
  • Source: European Union (EU) and the Copernicus programme
  • Download global GHSL raster datasets

Demographics

• Statistics South Africa
  • Access various datasets that are curated by Statistics South Africa can be downloaded here.
  • Statistics South Africa Census 2022 data can be downloaded here.
  • Access ward-level demographic data from Statistics South Africa Census 2022 can be downloaded here.
• WorldPop
  • Description: World population count estimates at 100m (country level) and 1km (global level) spatial resolutions over various years
  • Source: WorldPop
  • Download global WorldPop raster datasets
• LandScan
  • Description: World population count estimates at 1km spatial resolution over various years
  • Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL)
  • Download global LandScan raster datasets

Biodiversity data

• South African Protected Areas, Conservation Areas and Biosphere reserve boundary shapefiles
  • Source: Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, SA
  • Download these protection and conservation area boundaries
• 2025 SANBI National Biodiversity Assessment (NBA)
  • Description: It is a collaborative effort to synthesise the best available science on South Africa’s biodiversity to inform policy, support decision-making across multiple sectors, and contribute to national development priorities. The raster layer includes a detailed classification map specifically linked to ecosystem groups and wetland types etc.
  • Source: South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI)
  • Navigate the various ecosystem type tabs (search for data or data availability tabs for raster map downloads)

Students and lecturers from UJ and Wits are encouraged to make use of these valuable datasets for research projects focusing on the GCR.

For more information, please contact Christian Hamann (christian.hamann@gcro.ac.za).