Profile: Harry Gwala District Municipality
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43/52 HARRY GWALA DISTIRCT KWA ZULU NATAL By 2030 Harry Gwala District Municipality will be a leading water services provider in the KZN Province with its communities benefitting from a vibrant agriculture and tourism sector. 2 PROFILE: HARRY GWALA DISTRICT MUNICIPALITY PROFILE: HARRY GWALA DISTRICT MUNICIPALITY 3 CONTENT 1. Executive Summary ........................................................................................... 4 2. Introduction: Brief Overview ............................................................................. 6 2.1 Location ................................................................................................................................. 6 2.2 Historical Perspective ............................................................................................................ 7 2.3 Spatial Status ......................................................................................................................... 7 2.4 Land Ownership ................................................................................................................... 10 3. Social Development Profile ............................................................................. 12 3.1 Key Social Demographics ..................................................................................................... 12 3.1.1 Population ....................................................................................................................... 12 3.1.2 Race, Gender and Age ..................................................................................................... 13 3.1.3 Households ...................................................................................................................... 14 3.1.3.1 Child-Headed Households ........................................................................................... 14 3.1.3.2 Women Headed Households ...................................................................................... 14 3.2 Health Profile ....................................................................................................................... 14 3.3 Covid-19 ............................................................................................................................... 15 3.4 Poverty Dimensions ............................................................................................................. 17 3.4.1 Distribution ..................................................................................................................... 17 3.4.2 Inequality ......................................................................................................................... 19 3.4.3 Unemployed / Employed ................................................................................................ 19 3.5 Crime ................................................................................................................................... 20 3.6 Education and Skills profile.................................................................................................. 22 4. Drivers of the Economy ................................................................................... 23 4.1 Structure of the Economy .................................................................................................... 23 4.1.2 Secondary Sector ............................................................................................................. 26 4.1.3 Tertiary Sector ................................................................................................................. 27 4.1.4 Informal Sector ................................................................................................................ 27 5. Service Delivery ............................................................................................... 28 5.1 Water Services ..................................................................................................................... 28 5.2 Sanitation ............................................................................................................................. 29 5.3 Human Settlements ............................................................................................................. 30 5.4 Waste Management ............................................................................................................ 30 5.5 Roads and Transport............................................................................................................ 32 5.6 Electricity ............................................................................................................................. 32 6. Governance and Management ........................................................................ 33 6.1 Municipal Performance ....................................................................................................... 33 6.3 Traditional Affairs Governance ............................................................................................ 35 7. Projects to Diversify and Grow People and the Economy ........................... 38 7.1 Social Development Projects ............................................................................................... 38 7.2 Spatial Development ........................................................................................................... 38 7.2.1 Infrastructure Projects .................................................................................................... 39 7.2.2 Economic Projects ........................................................................................................... 39 7.3 Environmental Forecast ....................................................................................................... 40 8. Key Recommendations ................................................................................... 42 8.1 Prioritise Integrated Development Plan .............................................................................. 42 8.2 Investor and Sponsorship Opportunities ............................................................................. 42 4 PROFILE: HARRY GWALA DISTRICT MUNICIPALITY PROFILE: HARRY GWALA DISTRICT MUNICIPALITY 5 1. Executive Summary The Harry Gwala District Municipality is one of the ten Districts in the province of KwaZulu Natal. The District has four local municipalities, with a total population of 510 685 people distributed amongst the four local municipalities with Greater Kokstad having the least population. The dominant settlement type is traditional / tribal in three local municipalities, Kokstad is only municipality without traditional authority areas thus having the largest urban form coverage. The District is characterised by a rural landscape, it is known for its rich high-quality agricultural soils, abundant water and climate extremes which make the area more viable for dairy farming. The natural environment has proven to be a tourism attraction destination offering ecotourism and adventure tourism. On the 1st of July 2020 there were 172 confirmed cases in Harry Gwala District, 26 recoveries and 6 deaths. 64.5% of the population within the District are defined by StatsSA lower poverty line as being “in poverty”. In 2019, there were a total number of 42 200 people unemployed in Harry Gwala, which is an increase of 13 100 from 29 100 in 2009. The Harry Gwala District Municipality experienced an average annual increase of 3.79% in the number of unemployed people, which is worse than that of the KwaZulu-Natal Province which had an average annual increase in unemployment of 2.59%. Lack of formal schooling and limited job opportunity base could be the main contributing factor towards high unemployment rate within the District. A critical factor facing the Harry Gwala District appears to be the issue of education levels. In the period 2001- 2011, there has been an improvement in education across all the Municipalities, however, the level of people with a Matriculation or higher is still very low (less than 20% across the District). The key development priorities identified are: Regeneration of nodes, Human Resource Development, Agro processing, Agricultural Development, Infrastructural Development, and Boosting local economic development. The agricultural and tourism potential should be harnessed. In this regard, investments in agriculture with the view to establish nurture Cooperatives which benefit community members must be prioritised. Such cooperatives can facilitate access to local and national markets for the products of the agricultural projects Thus, small-scale farming can provide a solid foundation for socio-economic development. The Department of Tourism is another potential strategic partner in guiding young entrepreneurs in taking advantage of 6 PROFILE: HARRY GWALA DISTRICT MUNICIPALITY opportunities to participate in the local tourism industry. Development projects of this nature should be targeted at redressing youth unemployment and skills development to increase job opportunities and/or opportunities for self-employment. Thus, the development and support of SMMEs is of great significance. 2. Introduction: Brief Overview 2.1 Location Harry Gwala District municipality, formerly known as the Sisonke District municipality, is situated in the south of KwaZulu-Natal, approximately 250 kilometres south of the major metropolitan area of eThekwini. The Harry Gwala District Municipality is shares a border with Lesotho to