No evidence that South Africa has ‘the most racist government’ in the world

Claim: South Africa is ranked number one among the ten most racist governments in the world

Verdict: Unproven

In October 2024, an infographic by IndexMundi titled “10 most racist governments in the world with the highest discrimination index” began circulating on social media. It appeared on Facebook, X, Instagram, the Malaysian forum Lowyat, Reddit, and the French news website Pravda. South Africa is ranked first among the ten countries listed.

On X, the infographic often sparked politically and racially charged comments.  

For example, the Referendum Party, a separatist political party in South Africa, shared the infographic, commenting that the ruling African National Congress “must hang its head in shame”. A supporter of the opposition Economic Freedom Fighters party said, “only the EFF government will create a non-racial South Africa.”

 South African celebrities, including podcaster Gareth Cliff, also shared the infographic.

What is IndexMundi?

IndexMundi is a data-sourcing platform that collects and processes data. It was founded in 2003 and is headquartered in North Carolina in the US. 

According to the IndexMundi website, its founder, Miguel Barrientos, is an “accomplished technologist with extensive experience in the business intelligence and data warehousing sectors”. 

The platform says the purpose of its Racial Discrimination Survey “is to measure how much racism exists in a given country as perceived by its residents.” The survey results don’t include a date or any information on how often the survey is conducted. 

Some information about the number of responses is included. The survey had 486 respondents who claimed to be based in South Africa. The country’s population is 63,02 million.

This is one of the survey’s most obvious problems. Using a too-small sample size may lead to inconclusive results.

The methodology 

Sample size refers to the number of people who participate in a study or survey. According to SurveyMonkey, a platform for surveys, forms and market research, “If your sample size is too small, the survey’s results may not be accurate. If it’s too large, the survey can be expensive or require more time to complete.” 

The survey has other methodological problems. After asking respondents to provide their age, gender and country, just one question is asked: “How big of a problem is racial discrimination in the country where you live?”

Respondents can choose from the following answers: 

• Not a problem 
• Minor problem 
• Average problem 
• Serious problem 
• Very serious problem 

We took the survey twice, using made-up information. It’s unclear what happens to the data next, including how answers are verified and multiple responses are prevented. 

Dr Ansie Smit, a researcher with a PhD in Mathematical Statistics and secretary for the South African Statistical Association, said, “From our perspective, any time there are surveys like this, especially on sensitive topics such as racism, the survey methodology and results should be formally checked and reported on by an appropriate body to determine its reliability.”

Defining racism

According to South Africa’s justice department, racism is the belief that one race is superior to others and the use of that belief to justify power, control, and unequal treatment of people based on their race or ethnicity.

Dr David Williams, who researches social influences on health, including race, at Harvard University in the US, said, “Any single survey would not comprehensively capture all of the dimensions of racism.” 

What could be a very serious problem for you can be an average problem for someone else; hence, people’s perception of racial discrimination differs and is influenced by cultural background and personal experience. 

Conclusion 

The claim that South Africa has “the most racist government in the world” is based on a single survey conducted by IndexMundi, a data-sourcing platform. The survey methodology raises serious concerns. A very small sample size (486 respondents) from a large population (63 million) limits the reliability of the results. Only one question about perception was asked, and it’s not clear how answers were verified. 

Defining and measuring racism is complex. A single survey question cannot adequately capture its multifaceted nature. Therefore, the claim is unproven.  

This report was written by Xolani Baloyi as part of a mentorship programme by Africa Check, the continent’s first independent fact-checking organisation. The programme, funded by the United Nations Democracy Fund (UNDEF), aims to foster the practice of fact-checking across the continent.