Merafong City Local Municipality
| Merafong City | |
|---|---|
| — Local municipality — | |
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| Coordinates: 26°25′S 27°25′E / 26.417°S 27.417°ECoordinates: 26°25′S 27°25′E / 26.417°S 27.417°E | |
| Country | South Africa |
| Province | Gauteng |
| District | West Rand |
| Seat | Carletonville |
| Wards | 28 |
| Government[1] | |
| • Type | Municipal council |
| • Mayor | P Molokwane |
| Area | |
| • Total | 1,631 km2 (630 sq mi) |
| Population (2011)[2][3] | |
| • Total | 197,520 |
| • Density | 121.1/km2 (314/sq mi) |
| • Households | 66,624 |
| Racial makeup (2011)[2] | |
| • Black African | 86.5% |
| • Coloured | 1.1% |
| • Indian/Asian | 0.3% |
| • White | 11.8% |
| First languages (2011)[4] | |
| • Xhosa | 23.7% |
| • Tswana | 20.4% |
| • Sotho | 18.4% |
| • Afrikaans | 12.2% |
| • Other | 25.3% |
| Time zone | SAST (UTC+2) |
| Municipal code | GT484 |
Merafong City Local Municipality is a local municipality in West Rand District Municipality, Gauteng, South Africa. Its boundaries enclose some of the richest gold mines in the world. It is situated about 65km from Johannesburg and is serviced by a number of major roads, including the N12 from Johannesburg to Cape Town and the N14 (the main road between Gauteng and Mafikeng via Ventersdorp).
Formerly a cross-border municipality, the entire municipality was transferred to the North West province[5] following the abolition of cross-border municipalites by an amendment to the South African Constitution in 2005. The municipality was part of the North West Province from 2005 to 2009, when it was reincorporated into the Gauteng Province by another amendment to the Constitution, following often violent protests in the township of Khutsong.[6]
Merafong's historical development is closely knit with the discovery of rich gold deposits in the early 1930s.
Fochville is the oldest town in the region, and was declared a town in 1951.[7]
The town Carletonville was named after Guy Carleton Jones, an engineer from the Gold Fields Ltd mining company, who played a prominent role in the discovery of the West Wits gold field, of which Carletonville forms a part. The mining company decided in November 1946 to establish the town. Carletonville was proclaimed in 1948 and attained Town Council Status on 1 July 1959.[7]
Wedela is situated between Western Deep Levels and Elandsrand mine. The town's name is derived from the prefixes of the two mines: the "Wed-" from Western Deep Levels and the "-ela" from Elandsrand. Wedela was established as a mining village in December 1978 by Harry Oppenheimer, and municipal status was granted to the town on 1 January 1990.[7]
Attached to Fochville and Carletonville are the towns of Khutsong, Kokosi, Greenspark, Welverdiend, and Blybank.
[edit] Main places
The 2001 census divided the municipality into the following main places:[8]
| Place | Code | Area (km2) | Population | Most spoken language |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blybank | 78801 | 6.90 | 471 | Zulu |
| Blyvooruitzicht | 78802 | 6.31 | 6,461 | Xhosa |
| Carletonville | 78803 | 12.67 | 18,364 | Afrikaans |
| Deelkraal | 78804 | 9.41 | 3,356 | Afrikaans |
| Doornfontein | 78805 | 1.51 | 2,575 | Xhosa |
| East Driefontein Mine | 78806 | 2.03 | 11,481 | Xhosa |
| Elandsfontein | 68801 | 0.43 | 5,256 | Sotho |
| Elandsrand | 68802 | 0.19 | 1,786 | Sotho |
| Elandsridge | 78807 | 2.78 | 2,881 | Afrikaans |
| Fochville | 68803 | 9.53 | 11,344 | Afrikaans |
| Khutsong | 78808 | 8.60 | 69,858 | Tswana |
| Kokosi | 68804 | 4.90 | 23,062 | Tswana |
| Leeupoort | 68805 | 0.30 | 1,176 | Sotho |
| Letsatsing | 78809 | 0.76 | 1,511 | Xhosa |
| Oberholzer | 78811 | 3.09 | 5,368 | Afrikaans |
| Phomolong | 78812 | 0.25 | 947 | Xhosa |
| Wedela | 68807 | 2.18 | 14,159 | Xhosa |
| Welverdiend | 78813 | 4.06 | 2,226 | Afrikaans |
| Westdriefontein | 78814 | 38.29 | 4,792 | Sotho |
| Western Deep Levels Mine | 78815 | 44.72 | 11,274 | Sotho |
| Remainder of the municipality | 78810 + 68806 | 1,471.53 | 12,144 |
[edit] References
- ^ "Contact list: Executive Mayors". Government Communication & Information System. Retrieved 22 February 2012.
- ^ a b "Table: Census 2011 by municipalities, age group, gender and population group". Statistics South Africa. Retrieved 6 November 2012.
- ^ "Table: Census 2011, Municipalities, household size by population group of head of the household". Statistics South Africa. Retrieved 6 November 2012.
- ^ "Table: Census 2011 by municipalities,language, gender and population group". Statistics South Africa. Retrieved 6 November 2012.
- ^ Integrated Development Plan. Merafong City Local Municipality. Retrieved on Oct 6, 2009.
- ^ "NCOP Passes Merafong Bills." Press release. Parliament of the Republic of South Africa. Retrieved on Oct 15, 2009.
- ^ a b c About Merafong. Merafong City Local Municipality. Retrieved on Oct 6, 2009.
- ^ Lookup Tables - Statistics South Africa
[edit] External links
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