The Matjhabeng Local Municipality is a Category B municipality located in the eastern region of the Lejweleputswa District Municipality in the Free State Province of South Africa.
Overview
| Type of municipality: | Local Municipality (Category B) |
| MIIF classification: | B1 (secondary city) |
| Province: | Free State |
| District: | Lejweleputswa |
| Municipal code: | FS184 |
| Seat: | Welkom |
| Number of wards: | 36 |
| Total area: | 5,690 km² (2,197 square miles) |
| Population: | 439,034 (in 2022) |
| Executive mayor: | Thanduxolo David Khalipha |
About
Matjhabeng Local Municipality was established on 5 December 2000, after the amalgamation and emergence of the former six Transitional Local Councils into one financially viable and economically sustainable municipality.
The name Matjhabeng is a Sesotho word meaning “where nations meet”. It is derived from the migrant labour system where people from various countries like Mozambique, Lesotho, etc., met to work in the mines of the Goldfields.
Matjhabeng Local Municipality is geographically located in the eastern region of the Lejweleputswa District Municipality. It is one of five municipalities in the district.
Matjhabeng Local Municipality covers an area of 5,690 km² (2,197 square miles) in the goldfields of the central Free State, making it the second-smallest local municipality in the Lejweleputswa District. About 59.8% of the municipality has remained as a natural habitat.
The administrative headquarters/seat of Matjhabeng Local Municipality is in Welkom.
The municipality is divided into 36 wards.
Matjhabeng Local Municipality is bordered by:
- Nala and Tswelopele Local Municipalities to the west
- Masilonyana Local Municipality to the south
- Setsoto Local Municipality in the Thabo Mofutsanyana District Municipality to the southeast
- Moqhaka Local Municipality in the Fezile Dabi District Municipality to the east and north
Matjhabeng Local Municipality represents the hub of mining activity in the Free State province.
The economy of the Matjhabeng Local Municipality is centered on mining activities located in and around Allanridge, Odendaalsrus, Welkom, Virginia, and other beautiful towns. Manufacturing aimed at the mining sector exists to a limited extent in the above towns.
Other manufacturing activities are limited. Bulk water infrastructure consists mostly of reservoirs and pipelines of Sedibeng Water.
These supply all of the Matjhabeng towns and the mines with water from the Vaal River near Bothaville, and to a lesser extent from the Sand River.
The bulk electrical network is well established in the Matjhabeng area. Eskom serves all mines and towns in the municipality, and thus, there is sufficient bulk infrastructure available to serve the whole area. In all the previously disadvantaged areas, Eskom sells directly to consumers. No public transport system operates in Matjhabeng, bar privately-owned taxis.
There is one formal land-based protected area in the municipality, namely the Willem Pretorius Nature Reserve. There are no Ramsar sites. Grassland is the one biome in the Matjhabeng Municipality.
Seven vegetation types are found in Matjhabeng Local Municipality, namely Bloemfontein Karroid Shrubland, Central Free State Grassland, Highveld Alluvial Vegetation, Highveld Salt Pans, Vaal-Vet Sandy Grassland, Western Free State Clay Grassland, and Winburg Grassy Shrubland.
There is one endangered ecosystem, covering 11% of the Matjhabeng Local Municipality. This is the Vaal-Vet Sandy Grassland. There is only one water management area, namely the Middle Vaal.
Five rivers run through the municipality, including the Koolspruit, Sand, Sandspruit, and Vet. Wetlands cover 5.5 % of the Matjhabeng Local Municipality.
Population
According to the South African National Census of 2022, Matjhabeng Local Municipality has a population of 439,034 people, compared to 429,113 in 2016, and 407,020 in 2011.
The municipality has a population growth per annum of 0.74%.
According to the 2022 Census, 26.8% of the population is under the age of 15, 66.8% is between 15 and 64, and 6.3% is over 65.
Racial makeup
According to the 2022 Census, 87.7% of the population in Matjhabeng Local Municipality describe themselves as Black African, 9.6% as White, 2.1% as Coloured, and 0.4% as Indian/Asian.
Languages
According to the 2022 Census, 64% of the population speaks Sesotho as their first language, 12.3% speak isiXhosa, 12.3% speak Afrikaans, 3.6% speak English, and 7.8% speak other languages.
Economy
The main economic sectors of Matjhabeng Local Municipality are agriculture, mining, and manufacturing.
Health
The Free State Department of Health provides comprehensive health care services to Matjhabeng Local Municipality, which include the prevention of disease, health promotion, curative and rehabilitative services to the community.
The Department delivers integrated comprehensive level I to IV health care services to the Free State population as well as persons visiting the province. In terms of co-operative agreement, certain level II, III, and IV services are also delivered to Northern Cape residents and Lesotho citizens.
Hospitals in the Matjhabeng
- Katleho Hospital (Virginia)
- Thusanong Hospital (Odendaalsrus)
- Bongani Hospital (Welkom)
Municipal council and management
The Matjhabeng municipal council is comprised of 72 members elected by mixed-member proportional representation.
Thirty-six councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in 36 wards, while the remaining 36 are chosen from party lists so that the total number of party representatives is proportional to the number of votes received.
In the 2021 South African municipal elections, the African National Congress (ANC) won a reduced majority of 39 seats on the council.
| Composition of Council (No. of seats by political party) | – ANC: 39 – DA: 16 – EFF: 9 – ADEC: 2 – ISANCO: 2 – VF PLUS: 2 – ATM: 1 – COPE: 1 |
| Controlling party | ANC |
| Executive Mayor | Thanduxolo David Khalipha |
| Deputy Executive Mayor | n/a |
| Speaker | Bhekumuzi Charles Stofile |
| Chief Whip | Maramane Lilian Setabela |
| Other Council Members | – Mojalefa Buti (MMC: LED, Small Business, Agriculture and Tourism) – Xolile Masina (MMC: Infrastructure and Technical Service) – Kabotsa Moipatle (MMC: Sports, Arts and Culture) – Hlobohang Mokhomo (MMC: Finance) – Nomthandazo Monjovo (MMC: Special Programmes) – Sabata Moshoeu (MMC: Corporate Services and Good Governance) – Mojabeng Lydia Radebe (MMC: IDP and PME) – Matinte Radebe (MMC: Human Settlement, Land Use Management, and Spatial Planning) – Sanekane Ramalefane (MMC: Fleet, Disaster Management and Service Delivery) – Kgoarai Tlake (MMC: Community Services and Public Safety) |
| Municipal Manager | Lonwabo Ngoqo |
| Chief Financial Officer | Thabo Panyane |
| Senior Management | – Dr Vuyo Adonis (Executive Director: Corporate Services) – Morakane Mothekhe (Executive Director: Human Settlements) – Dr Sefako Ramphuma (Executive Director: LED) – Lauretta Williams (Executive Director: Community Support Services) |
| Communications Officers | Obed Notsi |
Towns/places
Below are the towns/places in Matjhabeng Local Municipality.
- Welkom
- Odendaalsrus
- Allanridge
- Thabong
- Kutloanong
- Nyakallong
- Virginia
- Hennenman
- Ventersburg
- Meloding
- Phomolong
- Mmamahabane
Contact details
The contact details of Matjhabeng Local Municipality are listed in the table below.
| Postal Address: | P.O. Box 708, Welkom, 9460 |
| Physical Address: | 319 Corner Ryk & Stateway, Welkom |
| Telephone: | 057 391 3911 |
| Fax: | 057 357 4393 |
| Email: | info@matjhabeng.co.za |
| Website: | www.matjhabeng.fs.gov.za |
Socioeconomic issues
Matjhabeng Local Municipality experiences high unemployment which was worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic. As of 2021, about 150,000 adults are unemployed. Ten gold mines closed their shafts, and suppliers of these mines closed shop.
Crime has increased in the municipality’s towns and townships, especially in Meloding, Thabong, Virginia, and Welkom. The reported crimes include vandalism and theft of municipal property and infrastructure, besides costly cable theft, illegal mining by zama zamas, theft of fencing material, and vandalism of cemeteries.
Reported corruption
In 2011, Matjhabeng Local Municipality came into the news as one of the worst examples of the widespread corruption under the ANC. In about four years, about R2 billion went missing. An enquiry led by the MEC Mosebenzi Zwane blamed the losses on the municipal manager Ben Malakoane and his predecessor Thabo Pietersen.
Zwane’s report slated Malakoane as “grossly negligent”, “undermining the rule of law” and engaging in contracts “without due process”, but premier Ace Magashule referred to the duo as his “comrades”.
In 2021 five officials of the municipality were arrested by the Hawks after over R1 million of municipal funds was allegedly misspent. One of the accused was involved in appointing the remaining accused as municipal officials.
