The uMshwathi Local Municipality is a Category B municipality within the uMgungundlovu District Municipality in the KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa.
Overview
| Type of municipality: | Local Municipality (Category B) |
| MIIF classification: | B4 (mostly rural) |
| Province: | KwaZulu-Natal |
| District: | uMgungundlovu |
| Municipal code: | KZN221 |
| Seat: | Wartburg |
| Number of wards: | 14 |
| Total area: | 1,866 km² (720 square miles) |
| Population: | 118,478 (in 2022) |
| Executive mayor: | Godfrey Mandla Zondi |
About
The uMshwathi Local Municipality was established in 2001 by amalgamating the Transitional Local Councils (TLCs) and Tribal Areas administered by the former Development Services Board.
The municipality is named after the uMshwathi River which runs through the municipal area, uMshwathi is an isiZulu word meaning ‘little stream or small river’.
The uMshwathi Local Municipality is geographically located in the eastern region of the uMgungundlovu District Municipality, between the N2 and the N3 National Routes, immediately adjacent to Pietermaritzburg, and about 107 kilometres northwest of Durban, in the KwaZulu-Natal Province.
The uMshwathi Local Municipality comprises 14 electoral wards and covers an area of 1,866 km² (720 square miles), making it the largest of seven local municipalities in the uMgungundlovu District.
The uMshwathi Local Municipality is bordered by:
- Mpofana and uMngeni Local Municipalities to the west
- Msunduzi and Mkhambathini Local Municipalities to the south
- eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality to the south
- Ndwedwe Local Municipality in the iLembe District Municipality to the east
- Umvoti Local Municipality in the uMzinyathi District Municipality to the northeast and north
The uMshwathi Municipality comprises of four major urban centres (Dalton, New Hanover, Cool Air, and Wartburg) as well as the rural residential settlements of Thokozani, Swayimane, Ozwathini, and Mpolweni.
The administrative headquarters/seat of the uMshwathi Local Municipality is in Wartburg, a town named after the Wartburg Castle in Eisenach, where Dr Martin Luther translated the bible into German.
The uMshwathi Local Municipality is located in an area that was largely under the control of tribal authorities until very recently. However, in the remaining portion there are towns built by German immigrants over 150 years ago. In the 1850s, thirteen cotton planter families left Germany and settled in the area.
The German immigrants were soon followed by missionaries and other colonists, mostly from Hanover, who also settled in the region, founded the towns of Wartburg and New Hanover, and brought with them the Lutheran faith, the German culture and language.
The uMshwathi Local Municipality is strategically situated between the major ports of Durban and Richards Bay, and approximately 95 kilometres (along the R614 Regional Route) and 132 kilometres (along the N3 National Route) from King Shaka International Airport and Dube TradePort Corporation (DTPC).
The Mvoti River, Mdloti River and Hazelmere Dam are the main sources of water for the North Coast and, are situated in uMshwathi.
The Albert Falls and Nagle Dam are also partly located within the boundaries of the uMshwathi Municipality.
The provincial positioning of uMshwathi Local Municipality accommodates secondary movement systems, which aim at providing effective and efficient access, forexample, the R33 Provincial Route serves as the main movement corridor between the N3 and the capital Msunduzi Municipality, to some of the surrounding Local Municipalities towards the north such as Endumeni, Msinga, and Umvoti.
Hence, due to these as well as many other characteristics, there is a clear reflection of the R33 being a primary development and access corridor offering a range of opportunities for investment in relation to the province.
The advantage of uMshwathi Local Municipality’s close proximity to Pietermaritzburg (Msunduzi Municipality), opportunity exists for positive spin-offs for Local Economic Development (LED).
The local economy can also be diversified through, the development of tourism infrastructure and middle to high-income residential and commercial developments that may be limited in Msunduzi.
Other economic development opportunities in uMshwathi Local Municipality include the development of a road corridor linking the N2 and N3 by traversing the municipality.
The land in uMshwathi Local Municipality is mostly agricultural, although urban development is to be found in the main towns.
The communities living in the underdeveloped areas have extremely limited access to basic physical and social requirements and very few economic opportunities. The present authority structures are, as yet, unable to provide for the improvement of basic living conditions urgently required by the rural inhabitants.
Population
According to the South African National Census of 2022, the uMshwathi Local Municipality has a population of 118,478 people, compared to 111,645 in 2016, and 96,793 in 2011.
The municipality has a population growth per annum of 1.96%.
According to the 2022 Census, 28.9% of the population is under the age of 15, 64.3% is between 15 and 64, and 6.8% is over 65.
Racial makeup
According to the 2022 Census, 95.1% of the population in the uMshwathi Local Municipality describe themselves as Black African, 2.7% as White, 1.7% as Indian/Asian, and 0.2% as Coloured.
Languages
According to the 2022 Census, 89.6% of the population speaks isiZulu as their first language, 4.9% speak English, 1.1% speak Sesotho, 1% speak isiNdebele, and 3.4% speak other languages.
Economy
The main economic sectors of the uMshwathi Local Municipality are tourism, agriculture, and manufacturing.
Agriculture
The importance of agriculture in uMshwathi Local Municipality cannot be overemphasized. Sugarcane is the predominant agricultural pursuit. Manufacturing activities are mainly related to agricultural processing activities, notably sugar and timber processing activities.
As part of the agri-business strategy, and the Agri-Hubs Program, the uMshwathi Municipality is also looking at the feasibility of establishing a pack house/s that will enable the local farmers to add value to their produce so that they derive greater benefit from their efforts.
The potato machine facility in Swayimana is to be upgraded to cater for the processing of other crops and providing storage facilities for inputs and equipment.
Plans are already afoot to start the process of converting a municipal building in New Hanover into a Farmer Production Support Unit that will provide storage and packing facilities for inputs and produce.
The construction of a privately owned chicken slaughter house is nearing completion. This facility will giving emerging poultry farmers access to a market for their chickens with minimal transport costs.
Informal Economy
This sector is playing an ever-increasing role in uMshwathi Local Municipality although its contribution to the local GDP has not been quantified.
Most trade takes place on the verges of the roads in the local towns and in the market stalls in Greengate, Swayimana Taxi Rank, DSD and grant pay points.
Owing to the non-availability of trading spaces in the local towns, informal trade takes place in areas which are not authorised by the Council and this causes conflict between formal business owners and informal traders.
The local Informal Chamber which deals with informal businesses has been formed and is reasonably functional. The municipality will be submitting funding proposals to potential funders for capacity building, provision of materials, equipment and economic infrastructure provide support to the informal traders.
Municipal council and management
The uMshwathi municipal council is comprised of 27 members elected by mixed-member proportional representation.
Fourteen councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in 14 wards, while the remaining 13 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 1 November 2021, the African National Congress (ANC) won a majority of 16 seats on the council.
| Composition of Council (No. of seats by political party) | – ANC: 16 – IFP: 4 – EFF: 3 – DA: 2 – ABC: 1 – PA: 1 |
| Controlling party | ANC |
| Executive Mayor | Godfrey Mandla Zondi (Mayor, Exco Member, and Chairperson: Finance Portfolio Committee) |
| Deputy Executive Mayor | Mlungisi Promise Dlamini (Deputy Mayor, Exco Member and Chairperson: Corporate Services Portfolio Committee) |
| Speaker | S.M Mkhithi |
| Chief Whip | n/a |
| Other Council Members | – N.E Cebekhulu (Exco Member and Chairperson: Infrastructure and Planning Services Portfolio Committee) – P.M Dladla – T.C Dlame – M.P Dumakude – N.W Gasa – S.G Jila – N.R Khanyile – S.J Luthuli – M.P Majozi (Exco Member) – S.M Mbatha-Ntuli (Exco Member and Chairperson: Community Services Portfolio Committee) – M.Z Mbewana – E.B Mbongwe (Chairperson: MPAC) – B.K Mkhize – B.E Mncube – V.M Mncwabe – W.M Mngadi – A.T Ndlovu – G.H Ngcobo – N.T Ngubane – B.E Nzama – R Thomas – N.A Thusi – L.P Zondi – C.S Zuma-Dube |
| Municipal Manager | Nhlanhla Maxwell Mabaso |
| Chief Financial Officer | Ramesh M Mani (General Manager: Finance) |
| Senior Management | – Thulile Mathenjwa (General Manager: Corporate Services) – Nokukhanya Mncube (General Manager: Technical Services) – B.T Zondi (General Manager: Community Services) |
| Communications Officers | S Mkhithi |
Towns/places
Below are the towns/places in the uMshwathi Local Municipality.
- Albert Falls
- Cool Air
- Dalton
- New Hanover
- Swayimana
- Trust Feed
- Wartburg
Contact details
The contact details of the uMshwathi Local Municipality are listed in the table below.
| Postal Address: | Private Bag X29, Wartburg, 3233 |
| Physical Address: | Main Street, New Hanover, 3230 |
| Telephone: | 033 816 6800 |
| Fax: | 033 502 0286 |
| Email: | – info@umshwathi.gov.za – admin@umshwathi.gov.za |
| Website: | www.umshwathi.gov.za |
