The Maluti-A-Phofung Local Municipality is a Category B municipality located in the eastern region of the Thabo Mofutsanyana District Municipality in the Free State Province of South Africa.
Overview
| Type of municipality: | Local Municipality (Category B) |
| MIIF classification: | B3 (small towns) |
| Province: | Free State |
| District: | Thabo Mofutsanyana |
| Municipal code: | FS194 |
| Seat: | Phuthaditjhaba |
| Number of wards: | 35 |
| Total area: | 4,338 km² (1,675 square miles) |
| Population: | 398,459 (in 2022) |
| Executive mayor: | Mamotseare Maria Lakaje-Mosia |
About
Maluti-A-Phofung Municipality was established on 5 December 2001, it comprises four former Transitional Local Councils, which are QwaQwa Rural, Phuthaditjhaba, Harrismith, and Kestell.
The municipality encompasses substantially all of the former bantustan of QwaQwa, except for the small enclave at Botshabelo. The population is almost entirely Basotho.
Maluti-A-Phofung Local Municipality is named after the Drakensberg mountains (known as “Maluti” in Sesotho). The peak in Qwaqwa is known as the Sentinel, which is called “Phofung” in Sesotho.
The Maluti-A-Phofung Local Municipality is geographically located in the eastern region of the Thabo Mofutsanyana District Municipality. It is one of the six municipalities that make up the district.
The Maluti-A-Phofung Local Municipality comprises 35 wards and covers an area of 4,338 km² (1,675 square miles), making it the second-smallest local municipality in the Thabo Mofutsanyana District.
The Maluti-A-Phofung Local Municipality is bordered by:
- Phumelela Local Municipality to the north
- Dihlabeng Local Municipality to the west
- The country of Lesotho to the south
- Okhahlamba Local Municipality in the uThukela District in the KwaZulu-Natal Province to the south
- Alfred Duma Local Municipality in the uThukela District in the KwaZulu-Natal Province to the east
The administrative headquarters/seat of Maluti-A-Phofung Local Municipality is in Phuthaditjhaba (previously known as Witsieshoek), which is the urban centre of Qwaqwa.
Surrounding Phuthaditjhaba are the rural villages of Qwaqwa, established on tribal land administered by the Department of Land Affairs.
Harrismith is a service center for the surrounding rural areas and a trading belt serving the national road, N3, which links the Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces. Harrismith is surrounded by Tshiame, located 12 kilometres to the west, and Intabazwe, which is located 15 kilometres to the north. The town is an economic hub for people living in Tshiame, Qwaqwa, and Intabazwe.
Kestell is a service center for the surrounding agriculturally oriented rural area, with Tlholong as the township. Kestell is situated along the N5 road that links Harrismith with Bethlehem.
The rural areas of Maluti-A-Phofung comprise commercial farms and major nature conservation centres such as Qwaqwa National Park, the Maluti Mountain Range, Platberg, and Sterkfontein Dam.
Maluti-A-Phofung Local Municipality is not only a tourist attraction destination, but also makes a big contribution in generating gross agricultural income for the whole of the province and is also highly regarded for its beef production.
Population
According to the South African National Census of 2022, the Maluti-A-Phofung Local Municipality has a population of 398,459 people, compared to 353,452 in 2016 and 335,784 in 2011.
The municipality has a population growth per annum of 1.66%.
According to the 2022 Census, 28.5% of the population is under the age of 15, 65% is between 15 and 64, and 6.5% is over 65.
Racial makeup
According to the 2022 Census, 98.2% of the population in Dihlabeng Local Municipality describe themselves as Black African, 1.3% as White, 0.2% as Coloured, and 0.2% as Indian/Asian.
Languages
According to the 2022 Census, 52.5% of the population speaks Sesotho as their first language, 40.8% speak isiZulu, 2% speak Afrikaans, 1.5% speak English, and 3.2% speak other languages.
Economy
The main economic sectors of Maluti-A-Phofung Local Municipality are agriculture and social services/government.
Municipal council and management
The Maluti-A-Phofung municipal council is comprised of 69 members elected by mixed-member proportional representation.
Thirty-five councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in 35 wards, while the remaining 34 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 47 seats on the council.
In the election of 1 November 2021, the African National Congress (ANC) lost its majority for the first time. Although it still finished with the most seats, a rival grouping led by the MAP16 Civic Movement, founded by a group of ANC councillors who had been expelled for voting to unseat the ANC mayor, who was facing corruption charges, formed a coalition to take control. Maluti-a-Phofung became the first local municipality in the Free State not to be governed by the ANC.
The coalition consists of the MAP16 Civic Movement, Economic Freedom Fighters, Dikwankwetla Party, African Transformation Movement, African Independent Congress, and the South African Royal Kingdoms Organization, supported by the Democratic Alliance and Freedom Front Plus.
| Composition of Council (No. of seats by political party) | – ANC: 28 – MAP16: 20 – EFF: 7 – DA: 5 – DPSA: 3 – ACM: 2 – AIC: 1 – ATM: 1 – AULA: 1 – SARKO: 1 – VF PLUS: 1 |
| Controlling party | ANC |
| Executive Mayor | Mamotseare Maria Lakaje-Mosia |
| Speaker | Dlamini Mandlenkosi Wiseman |
| Chief Whip | Lebesa Moeketsi Jacob |
| Other Council Members | – Manthona Bridget Lebesa (MMC: Community Services Portfolio) – Harry Mdakane – Ellen Mofokeng (MMC: Water and Sanitation) – Letlala Napo (MMC: IDP and PMS Portfolio) – Basie Ungerer (Director: Infrastructure) |
| Municipal Manager | Sam Makhubu (Acting Director: Corporate Services) |
| Chief Financial Officer | Matholase J Mazinyo |
| Senior Management | n/a |
| Communications Officers | – Moeketsi Nkadimeng Constance – Singavale Mbuiseloa Jeremia (PA to the Executive Mayor) – Tebello Mokokolisa (PA to the CFO) – Kopano Motaung (PA to the MM) – Sabelo Sigudu (PA to the Speaker) – Kessah Thabo |
Towns/places
Below are the towns/places in the Maluti-A-Phofung Local Municipality.
- Harrismith
- Kestell
- Phuthaditjhaba (formerly known as Witsieshoek)
Contact details
The contact details of Maluti-A-Phofung Local Municipality are listed in the table below.
| Postal Address: | Private Bag X805, Phuthaditjhaba, 9870 |
| Physical Address: | Cnr Moremoholo and Motloung Street, Setsing Complex, Phuthaditjhaba |
| Telephone: | 058 718 3700 |
| Fax: | 058 718 3777 |
| Email: | info@map.gov.za |
| Website: | www.map-municipality.co.za |
Problems
Maluti-a-Phofung is one of the poorest municipalities in the Free State Province. As of 2011, over 82% of the population lives below the poverty line.
Prior to 1994, the region was relatively prosperous with over 250,000 people employed in the textile and furniture industries, mostly at low wages. The new South African government terminated industrial subsidies. That and labor agitation for higher wages made the factories uneconomical, and over the next decade, most of the factories closed. The last one closed in 2010.
Presently, the government is the largest employer, followed by weak retail employment. The municipality itself has been in substantial debt for decades, and owes a considerable debt to both the regional water and electrical utilities (R3,769 million).
Municipal Services
The failure to deliver adequate municipal services has been a chronic problem since at least 2000. As a result, there have been several protests by the populace, among which was the one in Harrismith in 2004.
In 2018, residents held a mass protest concerning the failure to provide municipal services. The protest turned into a riot, shopping malls were looted, and one man was fatally shot. As a result, Cogta (the Free State Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs) intervened and administration was removed from the mayor and local council and placed directly under Cogta, a move welcomed by the South African Municipal Workers’ Union.
As of June 2022, there have been some improvements, with the delivery of water stabilising and a better relationship with Eskom.
