Dihlabeng Local Municipality

Dihlabeng Local Municipality is an administrative area in the Thabo Mofutsanyane District of the Free State in South Africa. It was established in terms of Section 12 of the Local Government Structures Act, 117 of 1998, after the first general local government elections of 5 December 2000 which heralded the final phase of local government reform as envisaged in 1994 at the onset of the process of democratisation.

Dihlabeng
Local municipality
Seal
Location in the Free State
Country	South Africa
Province	Free State
District	Thabo Mofutsanyana
Seat	Bethlehem
Wards	20
Government [1]
• Type	Municipal council
• Mayor	Lindiwe Makhalema
• Municipal Manager	Mr Busa Molatseli
Area
• Total	4,880 km^2 (1,880 sq mi)
Population  (2011)[2]
• Total	128,704
• Density	26/km^2 (68/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011) [2]
• Black African	87.4%
• Coloured	1.5%
• Indian/Asian	0.5%
• White	10.4%
First languages (2011) [3]
• Sotho	77.5%
• Afrikaans	11.9%
• Zulu	4.8%
• English	2.4%
• Other	3.4%
Time zone	UTC+2 (SAST)
Municipal code	FS192

The Municipality is a category B as defined in the Local Government Structures Act and shares executive and legislative authority with the category C municipality within whose area it falls i.e. Thabo Mofutsanyana District Municipality. The type is that of a Collective Executive System combined with a Ward Participatory System.

Geography

The Dihlabeng Local Municipality is situated within the boundaries of the Thabo Mofutsanyana District Municipality in the Eastern Free State. The geographical area is 7550.4910 km². The Municipality consists of the towns Bethlehem (incl. Bohlokong & Bakenpark), Clarens (incl. Kgubetswana), Fouriesburg (incl. Mashaeng), Paul Roux (incl. Fateng-Tse-Ntsho) and Rosendal (incl. Mautse).

Bethlehem is situated approximately 240 km north-east of Bloemfontein, 140 km east of Kroonstad and 90 km west of Harrismith. The town is strategically situated in the heart of the picturesque north-eastern Free State and originally developed as a service centre. Growth is stimulated by the strategic location of the area that serves as a central regional centre, situated adjacent to the N5 between Bloemfontein and Durban.

The scenic town of Clarens, often referred to the “Switzerland” of South Africa is situated ± 34 km south-east of Bethlehem. Clarens is a mere 20 km from the Golden Gate Highlands National Park.

Fouriesburg is situated on the R26 route and in close proximity of Lesotho. The town has the predominant function of a small service centre and is increasingly being supported by the tourism industry. 67% of the population resides in urban areas and 33% in surrounding rural areas.

Paul Roux is situated 35 km west of Bethlehem, on the N%. The area is mainly focused on agricultural significance.

Rosendal is located at the foot of the Witteberg mountain range on the R70.

Economy

The economic activities within the Municipality are dominated by farming (29.4%) and private business (17.2%). At ± 15% and 11% respectively, social services and trade operations are also relatively high economic activities.

Of a total farmland area of ± 3 000 ha in the Eastern Free State, 34% thereof is located within the Dihlabeng area – a factor that confirms the Agricultural comparative advantage that the sub region has in the Free State Province. The normal industrial incentives, with specific reference to affordable purchase prices, endorsed by Dihlabeng Local Council, ensure growth in the epithelium industrial area. The significance of the Lesotho Highlands Water and the Bethlehem Hydro Electricity projects are also relevant in this regard. Upmarket Residential, Business and Tourism development of a large scale is currently taking place in the region.

The agricultural sector of the Dihlabeng region is extremely prominent.

Considering small scale processing industries and intensive farming activities will result in future economic growth in the Agriculture sector. Effective productive grazing and small scale farming programmes on the existing and identified land for commonage have future growth potential. As part of Government’s Land Reform Programme, emerging farmers are trained and supported to ensure productive farming practices, which ensures economic growth in Dihlabeng..

Main places

The 2001 census divided the municipality into the following main places:[4]

Place	Code	Area (km^2)	Population	Most spoken language
Bethlehem	41301	17.87	11,815	Afrikaans
Bohlokong	41302	11.28	54,882	Sotho
Clarens	41303	2.58	4,084	Sotho
Fateng-Tse-Ntsho	41305	0.93	5,231	Sotho
Fouriesburg	41306	15.33	2,107	Sotho
Masjaing	41307	1.37	8,815	Sotho
Mautse	41308	0.45	2,447	Sotho
Paul Roux	41309	13.72	484	Afrikaans
Rosendal	41310	9.12	176	Afrikaans
Vaalbank	41311	10.54	27	Sotho
Remainder of the municipality	41304	4,655.83	38,834	Sotho

Politics

The municipal council consists of thirty-nine members elected by mixed-member proportional representation. Twenty councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in twenty wards, while the remaining nineteen are chosen from party lists so that the total number of party representatives is proportional to the number of votes received. In the election of 3 August 2016 the African National Congress (ANC) won a majority of twenty-five seats on the council. The following table shows the results of the election.[5][6]

Party		Votes				Seats
		Ward	List	Total	%	Ward	List	Total
	African National Congress	25,299	27,565	52,864	62.9	17	8	25
	Democratic Alliance	8,267	9,285	17,552	20.9	1	7	8
	Economic Freedom Fighters	2,610	3,094	5,704	6.8	0	3	3
	Independent	4,697	–	4,697	5.6	2	–	2
	Freedom Front Plus	619	644	1,263	1.5	0	1	1
	Leihlo La Setjhaba Rainbow	208	312	520	0.6	0	0	0
	African Christian Democratic Party	238	242	480	0.6	0	0	0
	Congress of the People	177	273	450	0.5	0	0	0
	African People's Convention	100	237	337	0.4	0	0	0
	United Residents Front	51	99	150	0.2	0	0	0
Total		42,266	41,751	84,017	100.0	20	19	39
Spoilt votes		920	1,388	2,308

References

1. "Contact list: Executive Mayors". Government Communication & Information System. Archived from the original on 14 July 2010. Retrieved 22 February 2012.
2. "Statistics by place". Statistics South Africa. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
3. "Statistics by place". Statistics South Africa. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
4. Lookup Tables - Statistics South Africa
5. "Results Summary – All Ballots: Dihlabeng" (PDF). Independent Electoral Commission. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
6. "Seat Calculation Detail: Dihlabeng" (PDF). Independent Electoral Commission. Retrieved 23 December 2016.

External links

• Dihlabeng Local Municipality