The Census 2011 results show that the Makana Municipality, which covers 735 square kilometres, is the 143rd largest in terms of population out of South Africa's total of 234 local municipalities.
The Census 2011 results show that the Makana Municipality, which covers 735 square kilometres, is the 143rd largest in terms of population out of South Africa's total of 234 local municipalities.
A total of 80 390 people live in the Makana municipal area, according to the latest Census figures, which were released this week.
Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) formally handed over the results of the nationwide census to President Jacob Zuma on Tuesday. The census was conducted in October last year.
Compared to other municipalities, Makana is not doing too badly, but there are some surprising results.
For example, in terms of refuse removal Makana is in 15th place out of all local municipalities – it is right up there among the best.
According to the 2011 Census in 1996 only 81.2% of houses in Makana had their refuse removed on a weekly basis, but in last year’s survey we were up to 89.59%. This means that the municipality removed refuse from 19 162 households every week.
This compares well to the national figures which show that the percentage of weekly refuse removals increased from 52.1% in 1996 to 62.1% last year.
Nationally there was a significant decrease in the proportion of households without any refuse disposal from 9.7% to 5.4%.
Perhaps one of the most surprising figures for Makana to come out of Census 2011 concerned school attendance. We came in 195th place out of 234 municipalities in terms of the proportion of young people between the ages of five and 24 who attend school.
This percentage has decreased from 64.7% in 1996 to only 61.55% in 2011. This is a disappointing figure, as many people like to identify Grahamstown as an education centre.
According to the latest census, 18 517 pupils in this age bracket attend school – this means there are a lot of young people in our area who should probably be attending school but are not.
Nationally the percentage of individuals aged five to 24 attending an educational institution has increased from 70.1% in 1996 to 73.5% in 2011.
Other areas covered by the 2011 census indicate that while Makana is doing alright by national standards, there is a lot of room for improvement.
For example, the survey revealed that in our municipal area there are 18 230 households with piped in water. This is an improvement from 75.55% of households in 2001 to 85.23% in the most recent census and puts us in 91st place in this national category.
In terms of electricity, Makana with 90% of its households electrified is in 73rd place – ahead of the national stats showing that the proportion of households using electricity for lighting has increased from 57% in 1996 to 84% in 2011.
Toilets, or lack of them, has always been a controversial subject in Makana and we are aware that there are still parts of our area where residents use the bucket system.
This humiliating method of disposing of human waste has provoked a number of angry protests in town and last year the executive mayor allowed us to take a photograph of him removing one of those hateful buckets.
Nationally the proportion of households that have flushing toilets connected to a sewerage system increased from 50% in 2001 to 57% in 2011.
In the Makana municipal area the change has been quite dramatic increasing from 35.4% in 2001 to 74.4% a decade later. This means that 15 917 households in Makana have flushing toilets, which places this municipality in 78th place nationally.
StatsSA is publishing data in tranches and this year they have promised to release more detailed information at a municipal level with a ring-bound book containing Census 2011 findings for each local municipality.
Personal and household information for selected groupings will be summarised for each municipality.
Next year there will be more releases in the form of thematic reports such as monographs on mortality, fertility, migration and education.
In upcoming editions of Grocott’s Mail we will reveal more detailed information from the last census as it is released.
