South Africa’s richest province in deep trouble

Nearly half of all retrenchment claims submitted to Liberty originate from Gauteng, with the deterioration in infrastructure negatively impacting the province’s economy. 

Liberty revealed this as part of its Claims Statistics for 2024, which were presented to the media late in May 2025. 

Liberty’s annual Claim Statistics provide valuable insights into health and lifestyle trends, socio-economic challenges, and underinsurance in South Africa. 

The insurer uses this data to analyse its product performance and industry trends through data gleaned from the different life stages of Liberty’s clients. 

This enables it to develop products that are better suited to its clients’ needs and improve its distribution channels to reach clients more effectively.

The insurer reported that it paid out R12 billion in claims in 2024 across its various business segments, which translates to approximately R48 million per working day. 

While the majority of these claims are made up of its flagship Life Protector offering, there was significant growth among its other segments. 

Income protection claims grew substantially, with lump sum payments increasing by 18.5% year-on-year and monthly payments up 11.6%. 

Liberty experienced nearly 8,000 claims for income protection in 2024, paying out over R750 million to clients who claimed. 

While this is comprised of medical illnesses, such as musculoskeletal disorders and cancer, retrenchment is the third most common cause of income protection claims, at 9.9%. 

When it comes to policy protection claims, retrenchment makes up 50.9% of all claims, more than cancer, auto-immune disorders, and mental disorders combined. 

Overall, retrenchment claims have declined slightly year-on-year, but significant shifts have occurred with regard to trends within the claims. 

In particular, the data shows that Gauteng is the source of 47.52% of all claims, with the Western Cape coming in second with 28.7% of all claims. 

Liberty said most retrenchment claims occur amongst middle-aged clients who are around the peak of their earning potential. 

The significant share of claims coming from Gauteng is worrying for the province, as these claims tend to be made by skilled individuals who are at the peak of their economic contribution. 

The loss of these jobs has significant ramifications throughout the local economy, as they tend to be breadwinners and substantial contributors to tax and rate payments. 

Johannesburg generates 16.5% of the country’s wealth and employs 12% of the national workforce, with more than 70% of South African companies headquartered in the city. 

The infographics below outline the trends flagged by Liberty within its income protection claims segment for 2024. 

The decline of Johannesburg

Gauteng’s decline is closely linked to that of its largest city, Johannesburg, which has been plagued by leadership instability and inadequate service delivery in recent years. 

The city’s decline appears to be accelerating as years of mismanagement and corruption have steadily eroded its institutions and infrastructure. 

The social media account Jozi vs Jozi has highlighted this, posting regular images of the decline of specific parts of the city.

In the past year, the city has been plagued by sporadic water shortages and warnings from Rand Water that the water supply is critically low. 

This looming crisis is almost a microcosm of everything wrong with the City of Johannesburg (CoJ), with the sporadic water shortages symptomatic of deeper problems in the municipality. 

Bloomberg reported earlier this year that the city had missed its annual target for water infrastructure investment every year since at least 2008.

To fix this problem alone, the city would need to invest R25 billion and work around the clock for 18 months. 

These are not isolated incidents. Johannesburg’s municipal infrastructure has deteriorated for years because of a lack of maintenance and investment.

The city is now defined by chaos, crime, and corruption, exacerbated by political infighting and incompetent public servants.

At the heart of the dysfunction in Johannesburg is a governance crisis. Since the ANC lost control of the city in 2016, unstable coalitions have resulted in eight mayors since 2019.

The previous mayor, Kabelo Gwamanda, had not completed school and had not obtained a matric certificate. He is a member of a party that holds 1% of the municipality’s 270 seats.

Joburg’s new mayor, Dada Morero, is under no illusions about the task at hand to resurrect South Africa’s economic hub. 

His administration estimates the city needs R221 billion to catch up on maintenance and overdue upgrades across its road, electricity, and water networks. 

Morero believes that leadership and “appetite” will get things right this time. 

“Residents are not asking for too much. They are only asking that the taps must run, the robots must work, the roads must be smooth, and the lights must be on,” he said upon becoming mayor. 

“We need to focus on those key issues and deliver on them.”

Morero’s top priority is tackling crime, alongside the simple enforcement of bylaws that are ignored wholesale and have turned parts of downtown into a mess.

“The big corporates have left there because of crime. They can’t have their staff afraid to come to work. Cars disappear from parking lots or, as you come in, there is a smash-and-grab.”