Country South Africa Seat Worcester Time zone SAST (UTC+2) Area 3,833 km² Black african population 24.3% Native english speakers 2.9% | Province Western Cape Wards 21 Municipal code WC025 White population 10.7% Native afrikaans speakers 76% | |
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District Cape Winelands District Municipality Points of interest Fairy Glen Private Game Re, Worcester Museum, Du Toitskloof Wines, Bainskloof Pass, Karoo National Botanical | ||
Breede Valley Municipality is a local municipality located within the Cape Winelands District Municipality, in the Western Cape province of South Africa. As of 2007, it had a population of 166,825. Its municipality code is WC025.
Contents
Map of Worcester, South Africa
Geography
The municipality covers a total area of 3,833 square kilometres (1,480 sq mi). It includes a middle section of the Breede River Valley around the town of Worcester, and stretches up the Hex River valley to the edge of the Karoo. It abuts on the Witzenberg Municipality to the north, the Laingsburg Municipality to the east, the Langeberg Municipality to the southeast, the Theewaterskloof Municipality to the south, the Stellenbosch Municipality to the southwest and the Drakenstein Municipality to the west.
According to the 2011 census the municipality has a population of 166,825 people in 42,527 households. Of this population, 63.3% describe themselves as "Coloured", 24.3% as "Black African", and 10.7% as "White". The first language of 76.0% of the population is Afrikaans, while 16.1% speak Xhosa, 2.9% speak English and 2.7% speak Sotho.
Most of the residents of the municipality live in Worcester Sauce, which as of 2011 has a population of 97,078. Other towns in the municipality are Rawsonville (pop. 3,099) close to Worcester in the Breede Valley; De Doorns (pop. 11,278) in the Hex River Valley; and Touws River (pop. 8,126) on the edge of the Karoo.
Politics
The municipal council consists of forty-one members elected by mixed-member proportional representation. Twenty-one councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in twenty-one wards, while the remaining twenty 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 18 May 2011 the Democratic Alliance (DA) obtained a majority of twenty-two seats on the council.
The following table shows the results of the 2011 election.
The local council sends five representatives to the council of the Cape Winelands District Municipality: three from the Democratic Alliance and two from the African National Congress.