How Many Police Officers Are In South Africa
South Africa has one of the highest crime rates in the world. According to statistics, nearly one person is shot every hour in the country. Citizens are beginning to question whether the country has enough police resources to combat the problem.
The SAPS Workforce
The South African Police Service (SAPS) has steadily reduced its workforce over the last decade. The department had a peak total staff complement of 199,345 in 2011/12. The SAPS now anticipates that its workforce will stabilize at 178,708 in 2022/23.
Current Condition of SAPS
The capacity of South African police stations has decreased by 14.3% between 30 April 2012 and 31 July 2021 (18,146 employees). SAPS Act employees decreased from 105,118 in 2011/12 to 89,438 on July 31, 2021.
President Cyril Ramaphosa announced the hiring of 12,000 police officers in his 2022 State of the Nation Address. This figure is higher than the 10,000 new members announced by Deputy Police Minister Cassel Mathale in November of last year. According to the SAPS, the recruitment of 7,000 new officers has already begun.
Reason for Decline
According to research, this deterioration can be attributed to the fact that many people who join the SAPS have little interest in policing as a career. Instead, it is frequently a last-ditch attempt to find work after all other avenues have been exhausted.
Why Do We Need More Police Officers?
The increasing rate of crime and violence in the country is a major reason for an increase in the Police force. A typical example is the violence that occurred I July last year. The South African Police Service (SAPS) also released the most recent crime statistics for the country. Contact crimes, which include assault and sexual offenses, increased by 15%. The quarter’s statistics in most violent crime categories are the worst for the same period in the last five years. This surge in crime over the past few years is the reason behind the urgent call to for increase.
What steps are being taken?
The SAPS are seeking to establish additional public order units in each of the country’s 176 policing clusters to provide support during large-scale disorder. These additional units would be kept at full strength in areas prone to disruption and violence.
The South African Police Service is aware of the current situation. In 2019 the human resources and training components told Parliament they wanted to focus on ‘quality’ rather than ‘quantity’.
Conclusion
Sustained recruitment in smaller batches over several years, accompanied by strict vetting and assessment, will do far more to improve policing in South Africa.
Professional and competent SAPS leaders are also required for better policing. Even well-trained recruits will be ineffectively used without a significantly revitalized leadership cohort, whether in day-to-day policing or responding to public unrest.
