Rietfontein is a town situated in the Kalahari Desert along the R31 Provincial Route in the Northern Cape Province of South Africa, very close to the Namibian border.
Rietfontein falls within the Dawid Kruiper Local Municipality and the ZF Mgcawu District Municipality.
The world-famous Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park is not very far from Rietfontein.
The town functions as the Rietfontein Borderpost with Namibia during the day hours of 08:00-16:30, which gives access to and from south-east Namibia via Aroab on the C16 main road.
Rietfontein was the capital of the now disestablished Mier Local Municipality. The town has civilised infrastructure, like the police station, a day hospital, and a high school, etc.
Rietfontein is also the place where the exploring scouts of Dirk Vilander found the Bushman, Khys, and his family at a fountain surrounded by reed-bushes, from there the name Rietfontein.