We are an unconventional problem-solving team with serious analytical capabilities.
Our work is often untried, rigorously tested and selectively scaled
We build the systems to turn untamed data into a reliable foundation for on-going decision-making.
Data doesn’t scare us. We dig into detail, question the obvious and find clarity in complexity.
We build accessible dashboards, bringing hidden data to life.
Where there is no data, we make it up. Properly. We design and undertake primary research to generate the evidence that doesn’t yet exist.
We build the systems to turn untamed data into a reliable foundation for on-going decision-making.
Explore this service ↗Data doesn’t scare us. We dig into detail, question the obvious and find clarity in complexity.
Explore this service ↗We build accessible dashboards, bringing hidden data to life.
Explore this service ↗Where there is no data, we make it up. Properly. We design and undertake primary research to generate the evidence that doesn’t yet exist.
Explore this service ↗We mapped South Africa’s title deed backlog and built a dashboard to explore backlog estimates and beneficiary transfers, from provinces to individual townships. ↗ We scraped the Department of Labour’s employment equity reports and built the data pipeline behind a public dashboard of South Africa’s workforce. ↗ We tracked Rwanda’s closing mobile money gender gap using transaction data to explore growth, financial inclusion and how first-time users engage with digital payments. ↗ We explored how farmer service centres support smallholders in Kenya combining surveys, interviews and business data to understand their financing needs and the role of digitisation. ↗ We tested the potential of small scale black soldier fly farming using survey data, stakeholder interviews and sector evidence on waste, markets and livelihoods. ↗ We analysed the market for affordable housing in Rwanda using household and earnings data to understand housing needs, affordability and access to finance. ↗
Our strength lies in the quality of our people. We bring together specialists in data, research, economics and engineering who combine technical depth with strong judgement and curiosity.
We work collaboratively and think rigorously, turning complex data into clear understanding and bringing the numbers to life in ways that are both analytically strong and genuinely useful.
Meet the team ↗
Explore the national picture. Follow the detail.
A structured, replicable approach to measuring South Africa’s title deed backlog and tracking beneficiary transfers. Explore the methodology behind the dashboard and help us refine the estimates.
| Country or source category | Tourist arrivals |
|---|---|
| Algeria | 650 |
| Angola | 22 875 |
| Argentina | 6 128 |
| Ascension | Not reported |
| Australia | 68 748 |
| Austria | 13 370 |
| Bangladesh | 4 345 |
| Belgium | 29 106 |
| Benin | 895 |
| Botswana | 215 663 |
| Brazil | 44 025 |
| Burkina Faso | 451 |
| Burundi | 765 |
| Cameroon | 2 734 |
| Canada | 35 528 |
| Canary Isles | Not reported |
| Cape Verde | Not reported |
| Cape Verde Island | 174 |
| Cape Verde Islands | Not reported |
| Central African Republic | 75 |
| Chad | 306 |
| Chile | 2 776 |
| China | 18 031 |
| Colombia | Not reported |
| Comoros | 116 |
| Congo | 740 |
| Côte d’Ivoire | 168 |
| Cote D'Ivoire | Not reported |
| Côte D'Ivoire | 1 176 |
| Cuba | Not reported |
| Cyprus | Not reported |
| Denmark | 8 893 |
| Djibouti | 36 |
| DRC | 20 407 |
| Egypt | 3 814 |
| Equat Guinea | Not reported |
| Equatorial Guinea | 112 |
| Eritrea | 202 |
| Eswatini | 526 303 |
| Ethiopia | 5 105 |
| France | 81 284 |
| Gabon | 2 480 |
| Gambia | 302 |
| Germany | 166 429 |
| Ghana | 23 400 |
| Greece | Not reported |
| Guinea | 481 |
| Guinea-Bissau | 41 |
| Hong Kong | Not reported |
| India | 29 525 |
| Indonesia | Not reported |
| Iran | Not reported |
| Ireland | 18 105 |
| Israel | 4 901 |
| Italy | 25 921 |
| Japan | 12 611 |
| Jordan | 225 |
| Kazakhstan | Not reported |
| Kenya | 32 067 |
| Korea | Not reported |
| Kuwait | Not reported |
| Lebanon | 521 |
| Lesotho | 958 162 |
| Liberia | 357 |
| Libya | 241 |
| Madagascar | 2 572 |
| Madeira Islands | Not reported |
| Malawi | 139 184 |
| Malaysia | 3 815 |
| Mali | 664 |
| Mauritania | 170 |
| Mauritius | 11 040 |
| Mexico | Not reported |
| Morocco | 1 125 |
| Mozambique | 1 502 882 |
| Namibia | 93 799 |
| Nepal | Not reported |
| New Zealand | 11 296 |
| Niger | 158 |
| Nigeria | 15 858 |
| Norway | 2 177 |
| Note that the August | Not reported |
| Note that the September | Not reported |
| Other | 81 118 |
| Others | Not reported |
| Pakistan | 11 107 |
| Peru | Not reported |
| Philippines | 3 537 |
| Poland | 4 142 |
| Portugal | 10 629 |
| Qatar | Not reported |
| Reunion | Not reported |
| Réunion | 22 |
| Russian Federation | 25 292 |
| Rwanda | 531 |
| Saint Helena | 3 |
| Sao Tome and Principe | Not reported |
| São Tomé and Príncipe | 78 |
| Saudi Arabia | 14 296 |
| Senegal | 910 |
| Seychelles | 2 484 |
| Sierra Leone | 293 |
| Singapore | 6 932 |
| Somalia | 467 |
| South Korea | 7 634 |
| South Sudan | 347 |
| Spain | 13 977 |
| Sri Lanka | Not reported |
| Swaziland | Not reported |
| Sweden | 13 147 |
| Switzerland | 27 713 |
| Syria | Not reported |
| Taiwan | 888 |
| Tanzania | 25 771 |
| Thailand | 3 113 |
| The Netherlands | 84 002 |
| The Sudan | 547 |
| Togo | 281 |
| Tristan Da Cunha | Not reported |
| Tunisia | 2 048 |
| Turkey | 8 381 |
| Uganda | 7 495 |
| UK | 234 620 |
| Ukraine | Not reported |
| United Arab Emirates | 6 168 |
| USA | 225 287 |
| Vietnam | Not reported |
| Western Africa | Not reported |
| Western Sahara | 9 |
| Zambia | 105 088 |
| Zimbabwe | 1 466 247 |
September is officially Tourism Month, but Stats SA’s data points to December and January as the peak months for foreign arrivals. The numbers also challenge familiar assumptions about who visits South Africa: Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Lesotho are its largest sources of tourists, ahead of the traditional overseas markets. With “holiday” visits including trips to see friends and family, shopping and other personal reasons, the headline figures capture much more than leisure travel. Pieter Massyn explores how regional movement, road access and overseas arrivals shape the statistics — and what they reveal about tourism’s place in southern Africa’s social and economic life.
