Matzikama Local Municipality

Matzikama
Local municipality
Seal
Location in the Western Cape
Topographic map
Coordinates: 31°15′S 18°30′E / 31.250°S 18.500°E / -31.250; 18.500Coordinates: 31°15′S 18°30′E / 31.250°S 18.500°E / -31.250; 18.500
Country	South Africa
Province	Western Cape
District	West Coast
Seat	Vredendal
Wards	8
Government
• Type	Municipal council
• Mayor	Mathilda Bains ()
Area
• Total	12,981 km2 (5,012 sq mi)
Population  (2011)[1]
• Total	67,147
• Density	5.2/km2 (13/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011) [1]
• Black African	8.5%
• Coloured	74.7%
• Indian/Asian	0.6%
• White	14.8%
First languages (2011) [2]
• Afrikaans	91.8%
• Xhosa	3.5%
• English	1.8%
• Other	2.9%
Time zone	UTC+2 (SAST)
Municipal code	WC011

Matzikama Local Municipality is a local municipality which governs the northernmost part of the Western Cape province of South Africa, including the towns of Vredendal, Vanrhynsdorp, Klawer and Lutzville, and the surrounding villages and rural areas. As of 2011 it had a population of 67,147.^[1] It forms part of the West Coast District Municipality, and has municipality code WC011.

Matzikamma is of KHOI-KHOI origin, the first people of South Africa. It contains the KHOEKHOE words 'ma' which is 'give' , tsi for'is' and kamma which is from x gamma and means 'water' and loosely translates into the water that gives.

Geography[]

The municipality covers a total area of 12,981 square kilometres (5,012 sq mi) in the northernmost part of the Western Cape province, stretching from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the mountains of the Escarpment in the east. The Olifants River flows through the southern part of the municipal area, while to the north lies the hilly area known as the Knersvlakte. The municipality abuts on the Kamiesberg Municipality to the north, the Hantam Municipality to the east and the Cederberg Municipality to the south.

According to the 2011 census the municipality has a population of 67,147 people in 18,835 households. Of this population, 74.7% describe themselves as "Coloured", 14.8% as "White", and 8.5% as "Black African". The first language of 91.8% of the population is Afrikaans, while 3.5% speak Xhosa and 1.8% speak English.^[3]

The principal town and seat of the council is Vredendal, which is situated in the valley of the Olifants River and has a population (according to the 2011 census) of 18,170. Other large towns in the municipality are Klawer (pop. 6,234) situated upstream from Vredendal, Lutzville (pop. 5,232) situated downstream from Vredendal, and Vanrhynsdorp (pop. 6,272) to the north-east towards the escarpment. In the Olifants River valley there are also smaller agricultural settlements at Ebenhaeser (pop. 1,305) and Koekenaap (pop. 1,551). South of the mouth of the Olifants River are the coastal villages of Doringbaai (pop. 1,260) and Strandfontein (pop. 431). The villages of Bitterfontein (pop. 986), Kliprand (pop. 205), Nuwerus (pop. 650) and Rietpoort (pop. 970) are situated in the sparsely-populated Knersvlakte in the northern part of the municipality.

History[]

At the end of the apartheid era, in the area that is today Matzikama, there were municipal councils for the towns of Vredendal, Klawer, Lutzville, Vanrhynsdorp and Bitterfontein, and a local council for the villages of Doringbaai and Strandfontein known as the Louis Rood Local Council. These councils were elected by the white residents. The coloured residents of Vredendal, Klawer, Lutzville, Vanrhynsdorp, Koekenaap, Bitterfontein and Nuwerus were governed by management committees subordinate to the white councils. The former mission stations of Ebenhaeser and Rietpoort were governed by management boards, and the remaining rural areas fell under the West Coast Regional Services Council.

While the negotiations to end apartheid were taking place a process was established for local authorities to negotiate voluntary mergers. Several towns in the Matzikama region took part in this process, resulting in each municipal council merging with its corresponding management committee: Klawer in September 1992, Vanrhynsdorp in December 1992, Vredendal in January 1993, and Lutzville in January 1994.

After the national elections of 1994 a process of local government transformation began, in which negotiations were held between the existing local authorities, political parties, and local community organisations. As a result of these negotiations, the existing local authorities were dissolved and transitional local councils (TLCs) were created for each town and village. In total eight TLCs were created.

• The Vanrhynsdorp TLC replaced the (merged) Vanrhynsdorp Municipality in December 1994.
• The Vredendal TLC replaced the (merged) Vredendal Municipality in December 1994.
• The Klawer TLC replaced the (merged) Klawer Municipality in January 1995.
• The Doringbaai/Strandfontein TLC replaced the Louis Rood Local Council in January 1995.
• The Ebenhaeser TLC replaced the Ebenhaeser Management Board in January 1995.
• The Lutzville TLC replaced the (merged) Lutzville Municipality as well as the Koekenaap Management Committee in February 1995.
• The Bitterfontein/Nuwerus TLC replaced the Bitterfontein Municipality, the Bitterfontein Management Committee and the Nuwerus Management Committee in February 1995.
• The Rietpoort TLC replaced the Rietpoort Management Board in May 1995.

The transitional councils were initially made up of members nominated by the various parties to the negotiations, until May 1996 when elections were held. At these elections the West Coast District Council was established, replacing the West Coast Regional Services Council. Transitional representative councils (TRCs) were also elected to represent rural areas outside the TLCs on the District Council; the area that was to become Matzikama was covered by the Vredendal and Vanrhynsdorp TRCs.

At the local elections of December 2000 the TLCs and TRCs were dissolved. The Matzikama Municipality was established, though in 2000 it incorporated only the southern half of the area it governs today. That area included Vredendal, Vanrhynsdorp, Klawer, Lutzville, Ebenhaeser and Doringbaai/Strandfontein. The sparsely populated northern area, including Bitterfontein/Nuwerus and Rietpoort, became a District Management Area of the West Coast District Municipality. In 2011 this area was incorporated into the Matzikama Municipality when District Management Areas were abolished.

Politics[]

The municipal council consists of fifteen members elected by mixed-member proportional representation. Eight councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in eight wards, while the remaining seven 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 3 August 2016 the Democratic Alliance (DA) won a majority of seats on the council, defeating an ANC-lead coalition that previously had controlled the municipality. DA later formed a coalition with the United Democrats (UD) after losing its council majority in a by-election.

The following table shows the results of the 2016 election.^[4][5][6]

The DA subsequently lost one seat to the African National Congress (ANC) in a by-election on 12 December 2018.^[7] The council was reconfigured as seen below:

The local council sends two representatives to the council of the West Coast District Municipality: one from the ANC and one from the DA.^[8]

References[]

External links[]

• Official website
• Matzikama Local Municipality on the Western Cape Government website