This graceful tree has very many uses and is much valued throughout Africa. The beautiful timber is easy to work and is used for furniture, implements and curios. The reddish brown heartwood is resistant to borer and termite and also polishes well. The sapwood is pale yellowish, and furniture and curios often have the sapwood included in the article. Kiaat is also used to make canoes because the wood does not shrink and swell much. Historically there was trade in this timber in the old Transvaal. This was on a minor scale and fitted in with the seasonal cattle drives from the lowveld winter grazing back to the highveld in summer. The red sap is used traditionally as a dye and in some areas mixed with animal fat to make a cosmetic for faces and bodies. It is also believed to have magical properties for the curing of problems concerning blood, apparently because of its close resemblance to blood.

There are many medicinal uses recorded for kiaat, including treatment for ringworm, stabbing pains, eye problems, malaria, blackwater fever, stomach problems and to increase the supply of breast milk. The tree is sometimes planted around the chief's enclosure to make a living fence. Baskets are also woven from the inner bark.