Cultural Guiding - Explore

The Province

2 – WildlifeCampus Cultural Guiding Course – Mpumalanga

Module # 1 – Mpumalanga Province Overview

Component # 1 – Mpumalanga Province Overview

Module # 2 – Cultural Overview

Component # 1 – Mpumalanga Cultural Overview

Module # 3 – Historical Overview

Component # 1 – Mpumalanga Historical Overview

Module # 4 – Wildlife and Nature Conservation Overview

Component # 1 – Mpumalanga Wildlife and Nature Conservation Overview

Module # 5 – The Cosmos Region

Component # 1 – Discover The Cosmos Region

Module # 6 – The Grasslands and Wetlands

Component # 1 – Discover Ermelo and other towns Component # 2 – Discover , and other towns

Module # 7 – The Cultural Heartland

Component # 1 – Discover The Cultural Heartland

Module # 8 – The Highlands Meander

Component # 1 – Discover The Highlands Meander

Module # 9 – The Lowveld Legogote

Component # 1 – Discover The Lowveld Legogote

Module # 10 – The Wild Frontier

Component # 1 – Discover The Wild Frontier

Mpumalanga Province Overview This course material is the copyrighted intellectual property of WildlifeCampus. It may not be copied, distributed or reproduced in any format whatsoever without the express written permission of WildlifeCampus. 3 – WildlifeCampus Cultural Guiding Course – Mpumalanga

Module # 11 – The

Component # 1 – Discover The Great Escarpment and Canyon Component # 2 – Discover Pilgrim's Rest and

Mpumalanga Province Overview This course material is the copyrighted intellectual property of WildlifeCampus. It may not be copied, distributed or reproduced in any format whatsoever without the express written permission of WildlifeCampus. 4 – WildlifeCampus Cultural Guiding Course – Mpumalanga

Module 1 - Component 1

Mpumalanga Province Overview

Leaving , on route to the Lowveld, the early bird is greeted by the rising sun as it lights up the rolling grasslands of the . No wonder the province is called Mpumalanga - “Place where the sun rises”. The province was previously known as the Eastern but changed to Mpumalanga in September 1995. It is bordered by the , Gauteng, Free State and KwaZulu Natal Provinces, as well as and Swaziland. It is mainly situated on the high plateau grasslands of the Middleveld. In the North-east, it rises towards mountain peaks and terminates in a large escarpment. It then plunges to a low-lying area known as the Lowveld.

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Location of The Mpumalanga Province in

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Municipal map of the Province

Image source: www.municipalities.co.za

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Coat of Arms

Motto: OMNIA LABOR VINCIT - “Work conquers all”

Above the base is a shield with a depiction of the Barberton daisy on it. The shield is supported by two kudus, one on either side. The shield is then topped by a crest. This indicates that the province is the second sphere of government. The crest has three rays, which symbolise the rising sun and the peaks of the Mpumalanga - .

Mpumalanga Province Overview This course material is the copyrighted intellectual property of WildlifeCampus. It may not be copied, distributed or reproduced in any format whatsoever without the express written permission of WildlifeCampus. 8 – WildlifeCampus Cultural Guiding Course – Mpumalanga

Flag

Mpumalanga Province Overview This course material is the copyrighted intellectual property of WildlifeCampus. It may not be copied, distributed or reproduced in any format whatsoever without the express written permission of WildlifeCampus. 9 – WildlifeCampus Cultural Guiding Course – Mpumalanga

Demographics

Even though it is one of the smaller provinces, Mpumalanga has a population of more than 4million people (Community Survey 2016).

Land surface area 76, 495km2 (29, 535 sq. mi)

Highest elevation 2, 331m (7, 648ft)

Total: 4, 335 964 Estimate (2018): 4, 523 900 Population Rank: 8th in South Africa Density: 53/km2 (140/sq. mi) Density rank: 3rd in South Africa (Community Survey 2016)

Afrikaans: 4,9% English: 4,8% IsiNdebele: 10,1% IsiXhosa: 1,1% IsiZulu: 28,8% Sepedi: 9,0% Languages Sesotho: 3,1% Setswana: 1,5% SiSwati: 29,1% Tshivenda: 0,3% Xitsonga: 9,6% Khoi; Nama and San languages: 0,0% Other: 0,6% (Community Survey 2016)

Black African: 93,6% White: 5,2% Races Coloured, Indian or Asian: 1% (Community Survey 2016)

Capital and Largest city (Nelspruit)

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Premier (2020)

Refilwe Maria Tsipane (born 1972/73), known as Refilwe Mtsweni-Tsipane, is a South African politician and member of the African National Congress. She is the 5th of Mpumalanga, serving since 20 March 2018. She succeeded former Premier David Mabuza after he was appointed Deputy President of South Africa. She is also a Member of the Mpumalanga Provincial Legislature. She previously served as MEC for Co- Operative Governance and Traditional Affairs.

* The last census was held in 2011, the next will be in 2021 – statistics included in the Cultural Guiding Series are based on the 2011 census (or 2016 community surveys) and will be updated once the 2021 census results are released.

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Municipalities and Districts

The former homelands of KwaNdebele (Ndebele), KaNgwane and part of Lebowa have all been incorporated into Mpumalanga.

Mpumalanga Province is divided into three municipal districts, which are further subdivided into 18 local municipalities:

Ehlanzeni District

Bushbuckridge Mbombela Nkomazi Thaba Chweu Umjindi

Gert Sibande District

Albert Luthuli Dipaleseng Govan Mbeki Lekwa Mkhondo Msukaligwa Pixley ka Seme

Nkangala District

Delmas Dr JS Moroka Emalahleni Highlands Steve Tshwete Thembisile

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Cities and Towns in Mpumalanga

Badplaas Balfour Barberton Carolina Chrissiesmeer Crocodile Bridge Gate Delmas eMakhazeni (Belfast) Emalahleni () Emgwenya () Emjejane (Hectorspruit) eMkhondo (Piet Retief) eNthokozweni () Ermelo Kriel

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Loding Loskop Dam Low's Creek Malelane Mashishing () Mbombela (Nelspruit) Middelburg Pilgrim's Rest Sabie Schoemanskloof Secunda Stoffberg Tweefontein Waterval Onder White River

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Geographical Features

Mpumalanga is divided by the Drakensberg Escarpment into two sections. The western part is known as the Highveld, with its rolling grasslands, and as the name indicates, it is situated at a high altitude. East of the mountain is the subtropical Lowveld/Bushveld, mainly dominated by the Savannah biome. It is flat with a few rocky outcrops here and there. The Drakensberg, with an altitude of more than 2, 000m at most places, has alpine grasslands and small areas of Afromontane Forests. On the border with Mozambique, the Lebombo Mountains is rather a low range. The geological wonder of Mpumalanga is the greenstone belt that occurs in the Barberton area. This is believed to be the oldest rocks on earth, dating 3.8 billion years ago. They contain evidence of first life on earth, green algae. The Highveld watershed gives rise the Vaal-River, flowing west towards the Gariep (Orange) River and finally into the . The Olifants (“Elephant”) and Komati/Usustu/Pongola catchments flow towards the .

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Climate

The province falls within a summer-rainfall area. The Highveld has cold frosty winters, due to its altitude ranging from 1, 700m to 2, 300m above sea level. However, the summers are hot with frequent thunderstorms in the late afternoon. The Lowveld has mild winters and a subtropical climate, attribute to its low altitude and proximity to the warm Indian Ocean. The highveld receives between 650 to 900mm per annum, but some places on the Escarpment, such as Graskop, receive up to 2, 500mm per annum, the highest in the province.

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Economy

Farming and agriculture

The climatic contrasts between the drier Highveld region, with its cold winters, and the hot, humid Lowveld allow for a variety of agricultural activities. 68% of Mpumalanga is used for agriculture. Crops include maize, wheat, sorghum, barley, sunflower seed, soybeans, 's, groundnuts, sugar cane, vegetables, coffee, tea, cotton, tobacco, citrus, subtropical and deciduous . Forestry is extensive around Sabie in the far northeast of the province. Located near the forests, is the site of one of South Africa's largest paper mills (Sappi). Natural grazing covers approximately 14% of Mpumalanga. The main products are beef, mutton, wool, poultry and dairy. Subtropical include – mangoes, avocados, litchis, bananas, pawpaws, granadillas and guavas.

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Crops include maize and sunflowers. Carolina-Bethal-Ermelo is mainly a sheep-farming area, but potatoes, sunflowers, maize and peanuts are also produced in this region. Standerton, in the south, is renowned for its large dairy industry. Ermelo used to be the district that produces the most wool in South Africa but has since moved into third place. eMkhondo (Piet Retief) in the south-east is a production area for tropical fruit and sugar. Malelane also has a large sugar industry. Sabie is situated in the forestry heartland of the country. Nelspruit is the second-largest citrus-producing area in the country and export one-third of South Africa’s oranges.

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Mining

Extensive mining is done and the minerals found include gold, platinum group metals, silica, chromite, vanadiferous magnetite, argentiferous zinc, antimony, cobalt, copper, iron, manganese, tin, , andalusite, chrysotile asbestos, kieselguhr, limestone, magnesite, talc and shale. Gold was first discovered in the Mpumalanga province in 1883 by Auguste Roberts in the mountains surrounding what is now Barberton. Gold is still mined in the Barberton area today. Mpumalanga accounts for 83% of South Africa's coal production. 90% of South Africa's coal consumption is used for electricity generation and the industry. Coal power stations are in proximity to the coal deposits. A coal liquefaction plant in Secunda (Secunda CTL) is one of the country's two petroleum- from-coal extraction plants, which is operated by the synthetic fuel company .

Witbank: The centre of the local coal-mining industry. Middelburg: Produces steel and vanadium. Barberton: The oldest gold-mining towns in South Africa. Secunda: South Africa’s second petroleum from-coal installation is located here. One of the country’s largest paper mills is situated at Ngodwana, close to its timber source.

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Infrastructure

The Corridor

The is a major trade corridor which connects the Gauteng, Limpopo, and Mpumalanga provinces of South Africa with Maputo, which is a port and the capital of Mozambique. The corridor comprises roads - including the new highway - and railways, ports, and border facilities at Komatipoort which connect the industrial areas around Gauteng, and mines and agricultural districts to the east, with ports on the Mozambique coast. Maputo and Matola are both deepwater ports. Transport organisations and border control agencies are cooperating to improve transport and lower barriers to trade.

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Tourism

The forestry plantations are an ideal backdrop for ecotourism opportunities, with a variety of popular hiking trails, a myriad waterfalls, patches of indigenous forest and many nature reserves. is the largest natural freshwater lake in South Africa and is famous for its variety of aquatic birds, especially flamingos.

Mpumalanga Province Overview This course material is the copyrighted intellectual property of WildlifeCampus. It may not be copied, distributed or reproduced in any format whatsoever without the express written permission of WildlifeCampus.