Nyandeni Local Municipality
Encyclopedia
Nyandeni Local Municipality is a local municipality
in the OR Tambo District
, situated in the Eastern Cape
of South Africa
. Its administrative seat is the town of Libode
. The entire municipal area falls within the former Transkei
homeland
area.
The urban population is mainly located in the two small towns of Libode
and Ngqeleni.
Scattered, low-density rural settlements dominate the municipality. 79% of households reside in traditional or village type settlements. These settlements are loosely scattered throughout the entire municipal area and are surrounded by communal grazing and arable lands. The majority of residential structures are self-built. Apart from a few trading stores, there is little sign of any significant economic activity within the rural settlements.
Many of the families in the rural regions of the municipality were formerly supported by men who worked as migrant labour in local mines. Subsequent retrenchment at the mines has left these communities with scant means to survive.
About 77% of households can be regarded as indigents with access to either no income or incomes of less than R800 (US $108) per month.
Most of the education institutions in Nyandeni cater to lower level schooling. Of the 426 schools in the Nyandeni area, 64% are overcrowded or highly overcrowded, according to the OR Tambo District office.
The spread of HIV/AIDS is an extremely severe and urgent problem in the area. In 2009 the HIV/AIDS prevalence rate was as high as 50%-60% among tested cases; these cases were mainly females who participated in voluntary testing during their regular pregnancy visits to local clinics.
Local municipality (South Africa)
In South Africa, a local municipality or Category B municipality is a type of municipality that serves as the third, and most local, tier of local government...
in the OR Tambo District
OR Tambo District Municipality
OR Tambo is one of the 7 districts of Eastern Cape province of South Africa. The seat of OR Tambo is Mthatha . The vast majority of its 1 676 463 people speak Xhosa . The district is named after Oliver Tambo...
, situated in the Eastern Cape
Eastern Cape
The Eastern Cape is a province of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, but its two largest cities are Port Elizabeth and East London. It was formed in 1994 out of the "independent" Xhosa homelands of Transkei and Ciskei, together with the eastern portion of the Cape Province...
of South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. Its administrative seat is the town of Libode
Libode
Libode is a small town of 5000 inhabitants in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is situated on the R61 road from Port St Johns to Umtata and serves as the administrative seat of the Nyandeni Local Municipality, which is part of the OR Tambo District Municipality...
. The entire municipal area falls within the former Transkei
Transkei
The Transkei , officially the Republic of Transkei , was a Bantustan—an area set aside for members of a specific ethnicity—and nominal parliamentary democracy in the southeastern region of South Africa...
homeland
Bantustan
A bantustan was a territory set aside for black inhabitants of South Africa and South West Africa , as part of the policy of apartheid...
area.
The urban population is mainly located in the two small towns of Libode
Libode
Libode is a small town of 5000 inhabitants in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is situated on the R61 road from Port St Johns to Umtata and serves as the administrative seat of the Nyandeni Local Municipality, which is part of the OR Tambo District Municipality...
and Ngqeleni.
Scattered, low-density rural settlements dominate the municipality. 79% of households reside in traditional or village type settlements. These settlements are loosely scattered throughout the entire municipal area and are surrounded by communal grazing and arable lands. The majority of residential structures are self-built. Apart from a few trading stores, there is little sign of any significant economic activity within the rural settlements.
Many of the families in the rural regions of the municipality were formerly supported by men who worked as migrant labour in local mines. Subsequent retrenchment at the mines has left these communities with scant means to survive.
About 77% of households can be regarded as indigents with access to either no income or incomes of less than R800 (US $108) per month.
Most of the education institutions in Nyandeni cater to lower level schooling. Of the 426 schools in the Nyandeni area, 64% are overcrowded or highly overcrowded, according to the OR Tambo District office.
The spread of HIV/AIDS is an extremely severe and urgent problem in the area. In 2009 the HIV/AIDS prevalence rate was as high as 50%-60% among tested cases; these cases were mainly females who participated in voluntary testing during their regular pregnancy visits to local clinics.