Dihlabeng
Local municipality
Official seal of Dihlabeng
Seal
Location in the Free State
Location in the Free State
CountrySouth Africa
ProvinceFree State
DistrictThabo Mofutsanyana
SeatBethlehem
Wards20
Government
[1]
 • TypeMunicipal council
 • MayorLindiwe Makhalema
 • Municipal ManagerMr Busa Molatseli
Area
 • Total4,880 km2 (1,880 sq mi)
Population
 (2011)[2]
 • Total128,704
 • Density26/km2 (68/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011)
[2]
 • Black African87.4%
 • Coloured1.5%
 • Indian/Asian0.5%
 • White10.4%
First languages (2011)
[2]
 • Sotho77.5%
 • Afrikaans11.9%
 • Zulu4.8%
 • English2.4%
 • Other3.4%
Time zoneUTC+2 (SAST)
Municipal codeFS192

Dihlabeng Municipality (Sotho: Masepala wa Dihlabeng; Afrikaans: Dihlabeng Munisipaliteit) is a local municipality within the Thabo Mofutsanyane District Municipality, in the Free State province of South Africa. It was established after the first general local government elections on 5 December 2000, which heralded the final phase of local government reform as envisaged in 1994 at the onset of the process of democratisation and the end of apartheid. The seat is Bethlehem.

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:[3]

PlaceCodeArea (km2)PopulationMost spoken language
Bethlehem4130117.8711,815Afrikaans
Bohlokong4130211.2854,882Sotho
Clarens413032.584,084Sotho
Fateng-Tse-Ntsho413050.935,231Sotho
Fouriesburg4130615.332,107Sotho
Masjaing413071.378,815Sotho
Mautse413080.452,447Sotho
Paul Roux4130913.72484Afrikaans
Rosendal413109.12176Afrikaans
Vaalbank4131110.5427Sotho
Remainder of the municipality413044,655.8338,834Sotho

Politics

The municipal council consists of forty members elected by mixed-member proportional representation. Twenty councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in twenty wards, while the remaining twenty 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 twenty-three seats on the council.

The following table shows the results of the 2021 election.[4]

PartyWardListTotal
seats
Votes%SeatsVotes%Seats
African National Congress19,42055.281819,59556.11523
Democratic Alliance4,96214.1216,45018.4767
Economic Freedom Fighters3,4509.8203,70810.6244
All Unemployment Labour Alliance1,7314.9301,5304.3822
Independent candidates2,8618.1411
Freedom Front Plus1,0462.9801,6024.5922
Forum for Service Delivery8672.4708272.3711
7 other parties7952.2601,2133.4700
Total35,132100.002034,925100.002040
Valid votes35,13297.9534,92597.35
Invalid/blank votes7352.059522.65
Total votes35,867100.0035,877100.00
Registered voters/turnout72,29849.6172,29849.62

References

  1. ↑ "Contact list: Executive Mayors". Government Communication & Information System. Archived from the original on 14 July 2010. Retrieved 22 February 2012.
  2. 1 2 3 "Statistics by place". Statistics South Africa. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
  3. ↑ Lookup Tables - Statistics South Africa
  4. ↑ "Election Result Table for LGE2021 — Dihlabeng". wikitable.frith.dev. Retrieved 2023-10-28.

28°13′46″S 28°18′38″E / 28.22944°S 28.31056°E / -28.22944; 28.31056

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