The private security industry in South Africa is among the largest in the world, with over 9 000 registered companies, 450 000 registered active private security guards and a further 1.5 million qualified (but inactive) guards; may times more than the available personnel of the combined South African police and army. Studies shows that South Africa have 2.57 private security personnel for every police employee. This is attributed by the country’s high levels of crime, to a lack of public funds from Parliament towards the South African Police Service (SAPS), or to an increasing trend in many countries towards government outsourcing of certain security functions. Others have suggested the number of high-wealth individuals in South Africa in comparison with the rest of Africa, has led to the growth of the industry.