Matatiele

Matatiele Local Municipality (EC144) was established on the 1st of March 2006. The Municipality went through major changes in terms of its demarcation and governance. Prior to 1 March 2006, Matatiele Local Municipality (KZ5a3) comprised the towns of Matatiele and Cedarville and fell within the Sisonke District of Kwazulu Natal.

From 1 March 2006, the Municipality was incorporated into the Alfred Nzo District of the Eastern Cape. The newly established Matatiele Local Municipality includes the towns of  Matatiele, Cedarville and the magisterial district of Maluti which formerly fell under the Umzimvubu Municipality and a rural district management area which formerly fell under the jurisdiction of the Alfred Nzo District Municipality.

(Source: matatiele.gov.za)

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Mafube

The Mafube Local Municipality is one of the local municipalities found within the Fezile Dabi District Municipality. The municipality was established in terms of section 12 of the Municipal Structures Act, 1998, following the local government elections of 2000.

The municipality is made up of four towns, namely Frankfort, Villiers, Cornelia and Tweeling. Frankfort serves as a home for the headquarters of the municipality.

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Indaka

Indaka Municipality is a newly established municipality (established 18 December 2000), which is mainly rural. The municipality shares borders with Emnambithi, Endumeni, Msinga and Umtshezi municipalities and is situated 49 km east of Ladysmith.

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Ethekwini

eThekwini Municipality is located on the east coast of South Africa in the Province of KwaZulu-Natal (KZN).  The Municipality spans an area of approximately 2 297km² and is home to some 3,5 million people.  It consists of a diverse society, which faces various social, economic, environmental, and governance challenges.

As a result it strives to address these challenges, which means meeting the needs of an ever-increasing population.  The population of the metro, with reference to Census 2011 is 3 442 361.  The population has grown by 1,08 % from 2001 to 2011 as against 2,34% from 1996 to 2001.

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Makhuduthamaga

The Makhuduthamaga Local Municipality is a category B4 municipality that is located within the Sekhukhune District Municipality of Limpopo. The name (Makhuduthamaga) is derived from the liberatory name given to those who supported the anti-apartheid struggle in Sekhukhuneland in the 1950s. Makhuduthamaga raged a war against the white commissioner and his assailants, Marentsara. In its State of Local Government in South Africa overview report, the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA 2009) describes category B4 municipalities as municipalities which are mainly rural with communal tenure and with, at most, one or two small towns in their area. The municipality is completely rural in nature, dominated by traditional land ownership. It comprises a land area of approximately 2 096 km². It is made up of 189 settlements with a population of 274 358 people and 65 217 households, which amounts to more than 24% of the district, according to Census 2011. Like most rural municipalities, Makhuduthamaga is characterized by a weak economic base, poor infrastructure, major service delivery backlogs, dispersed human settlements and high poverty levels. It shares borders with Fetakgomo to the north-east, Ephraim Mogale to the west, Elias Motsoaledi to the south and Lepelle Nkumpi Municipality in the north. Jane Furse, the headquarters of Makhuduthamaga Local Municipality, is located 347 km north-east of Johannesburg, 247 km north-east of Pretoria, 189 km southeast of Polokwane, and 70 km south-west of Burgersfort

(http://www.makhuduthamaga.gov.za/docs/idp/2013-14%20IDP%20Draft.pdf).

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Agricultural Statistics

The history of agricultural statistics in South Africa goes back as far back as the beginning of the 20th century. With the exception of the World Wars and great depression years, an agricultural census was conducted on annual basis in the first half of the 20th century. As agriculture’s contribution to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) decreased over the years, so did the frequency of conducting agricultural censuses. Post 1994, agricultural censuses have been conducted on a five yearly basis, with annual surveys being conducted in between the census years. Until now, agricultural censuses and surveys have largely concentrated on commercial agriculture leaving out small-scale and subsistence agriculture. In 2009, Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) conducted an audit of agricultural statistics in the country. One of the findings was that the country lacked information on smallholder and subsistence agriculture. The current list of farmers being used to conduct surveys was mainly confined to commercial agriculture. A decision was taken that three questions related to agriculture would be included in the Population Census 2011 (Census 2011) questionnaire. The main objective was to identify all households involved in agriculture in the country, so that a complete frame of all individuals and entities involved in agriculture (both subsistence and commercial) could be generated. This will allow for a comprehensive agricultural census to be conducted.read more »

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Crime statistics

  Crime prevention and ultimate elimination is one of the priority goals of the National Development Plan (NDP). Crime affects all people irrespective of their background, and it is a topic that attracts a lot of media attention. Analysis will show that some groupings are affected by certain types of crime more than others. Crime statistics are essential in order to understand the temporal and spatial dynamics of crime. Such understanding is vital for planning targeted interventions and assessing progress made towards achieving a crime free nation where "people living in South Africa feel safe at home, at school and at work, and they enjoy a community life free of fear. Women walk freely in the streets and children play safely outside". There are two major sources of crime statistics in South Africa, namely the South African Police Service (SAPS) and Statistics South Africa (Stats SA). The other smaller sources such as the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) and the Medical Research Council (MRC) are by no means insignificant, as they provide statistics for types of crime not adequately covered by the major players, such as domestic violence. While the methodologies used by the SAPS and Stats SA are very different, the two institutions produce crime statistics that complement each other. The SAPS produces administrative data of crime reported to police stations by victims, the public and crime reported as a result of police activity. Stats SA produces crime statistics estimated from household surveys. Crimes reported to the SAPS do not always have the same definitions as crime statistics produced from VOCS. In addition, not all crimes reported by the SAPS are reported by VOCS and vice versa. Working in close collaboration with Stats SA, the South African Police Service has undertaken to align its Classification of Crime for Statistical Purposes (CCSP) to the International Classification of Crime for Statistical Purposes (ICCS). Highlights of the 2017/18 Victims of Crime report Aggregate crime levels increased in 2017/18 compared to 2016/17. It is estimated that over 1,5 million incidences of household crime occurred in South Africa in 2017/18, which constitutes an increase of 5% compared to the previous year. Incidences of crime on individuals are estimated to be over 1,6 million, which is an increase of 5% from the previous year. Aggregate household crime levels increased in Free State, KwaZulu-Natal, North West, Gauteng and Mpumalanga. Individual crime levels increased in Free State, North West and Gauteng. North West experienced a drastic increase of 80% in the individual crime level. Perceptions of South Africans on crime in 2017/18 were more skeptical compared to the previous year. About 42% thought property crime increased during the past three years. This is an increase of 6,9% from the previous year. 46% thought violent crime increased during the past three years, an increase of 4,5% over the previous year. Western Cape was the most skeptical about crime trends, as 84% of Western Cape residents thought that crime in South African increased or stayed the same. Mpumalanga was the least skeptical among the nine provinces, where 65% thought that crime increased or stayed the same during the past three years. Crimes that are feared most are those that are most common. An estimated 79% of South Africans felt safe walking alone in their neighbourhoods during the day, which is a decrease of 6,7% from last year. About 32% of South Africans felt safe walking alone in their neighbourhoods at night, constituting an increase of 8% from last year. The highlights for household and individual experiences of crime from the 2016/17 VOCS report are as follows:  read more »

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Household Service Delivery Statistics

The dawn of democracy in 1994 created a new dispensation in which access to basic services such as housing, water and sanitation was recognized as a fundamental human right. South Africa inherited high levels of poverty and it continues to be confronted with unequal and often inadequate access to resources, infrastructure and social services. The Bill of Rights enshrined the right to basic services and commanded that the state must take reasonable measures to achieve the progressive realisation of these rights. Faced by inadequate information about the state of development in South Africa, Statistics South Africa (then called the Central Statistical Service) launched the October Household Survey (OHS) programme in 1993. The survey was discontinued in 1999 and subsequently replaced by the General Household Survey (GHS) which was instituted in 2002 in order to determine the level of development in the country and the performance of programs and projects on a regular basis. The GHS continues to evolve and key questions are continuously added and/or modified in consultation with key stakeholders to maintain the relevance and quality of data. In addition to measuring access to key services, the level of satisfaction with, as well as perceived quality of selected services provided by Government are also measured.read more »

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South Africa and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)

In the year 2000 the South African government, along with other members of the United Nations (UN), committed to a national and global plan of action to reduce poverty and ensure the development of its people. The sixth and final Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) Country Report for 2015 provides an overview of the progress South Africa has made towards achieving the eight MDGs. In addition, it provides an historical account of South Africa’s development in numbers. The MDGs are:

1. To eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
2. To promote universal primary education
3. To promote gender equality and empower women
4. To reduce child mortality
5. To improve maternal health
6. To combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases
7. To ensure environmental sustainability
8. To develop a global partnership for the development.

This report reflects the intense national effort, from a range of institutions, organisations and individuals, to improve the lives of all South Africans; particularly the poor and marginalised. A great many people have contributed to this report through their participation in various consultative fora across the country, often at great expense and sacrifice. What started 15 years ago certainly does not end here, and reporting on development issues will continue through the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It is therefore critical that South Africa’s unfinished MDG business, as well as emerging developmental issues, be appropriately integrated within the SDGs in a manner that places the spotlight on them, while providing adequate direction and impetus for effective planning, development of appropriate policies and budgets, and the construction of appropriate national monitoring and reporting systems.

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SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS

The global agenda on sustainable development is best expressed through the SDGs, what one can best describe as the ultimate measure of progress which is about prosperity for people and planet. The SDGs, a set of 17 “Global Goals”, 169 targets, and 230 indicators, are a standard for evaluating if progress is being made across the world to reduce poverty, improve quality of life, and realise aspirations of the masses of people towards development. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): Indicator Baseline Report 2017 This report sheds light on what has been done and on what more needs to be accomplished in order to rid South Africa of extreme poverty. Structure of the report The report covers all 17 goals stated in the SDG documents. Each goal will be treated as a separate chapter in the report. Each chapter will be structured as follows: 1)         An introduction linking the sustainable development goal to the country’s National Development Plan (NDP), related policies, programmes and projects initiated by departments and institutions. 2)         Statement of the individual targets relating to the goal together with all indicators pertaining to specific targets. 3)         The definition of the indicator as well as the method of computing the indicator values. 4)         A baseline indicator value and where applicable, a chart/table indicating changes over time for the selected indicators are given. Baseline indicator values are based on data obtained during the base year (2016) or the year closest to 2016 for which data was available. In instances where the base year/period is not referenced on the charts/tables, the base year is 2016. 5)         Indication of the data source(s). 6)         Where possible, a comment section relating to the indicator is included.

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