Ephraim Mogale Local Municipality
Ephraim Mogale Local Municipality is a local municipality in Limpopo, covering 2 011 square kilometres. It falls within the Sekhukhune District Municipality. It takes in the towns and settlements of Marble Hall and Schuinsdraai Nature Reserve.
Census 2022 counted 132 468 residents, making it the 20th most populous of the 27 municipalities in Limpopo and 150th of 257 nationally. That works out to 65.9 people per square kilometre. Population is spread thinly across the area. There are 35 953 households, averaging 3.7 people each. 32.0% of residents are under 15 and 8.0% are over 65. Among residents aged 20 and over, 5.3% hold a higher education qualification and 17.8% have had no schooling.
The council has 32 seats across 6 parties, with ANC holding the largest share at 19 seats (59.4%). ANC governs the municipality. Mr Given Marasekeng Hlalithi Moimana serves as executive mayor (ANC), and Mr Mogobadi Moropa is municipal manager.
On this site’s financial health measure, which weighs the Auditor-General’s opinion alongside operating margin, liquidity, cash cover and irregular spending, Ephraim Mogale scores 77.3 out of 100 for 2024/25, a grade of B, described as sound. Its most recent audit outcome was recorded as “financially unqualified”. In 2024/25 it reported R416.9 million in operating revenue against R410.9 million in expenditure, an operating surplus of R6.0 million. At the last census, 28.2% of households had piped water inside the dwelling, 97.0% used electricity for lighting and 28.7% had refuse removed weekly.
Council and management
Seats: Electoral Commission, 2021 local government elections
- ANC 19 59.4%
- EFF 7 21.9%
- DA 2 6.3%
- INDEPENDENT 2 6.3%
- BPSA 1 3.1%
- VF PLUS 1 3.1%
Office bearers
Finances
National Treasury, audited outcomes
| Measure | 2024/25 | 2023/24 | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUDIT OUTCOME | Financially unqualified | Financially unqualified | Financially unqualified | Qualified audit | Financially unqualified |
Financial performance
| Measure | 2024/25 | 2023/24 | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Property rates | 47 104 | 55 328 | 40 957 | 41 723 | 40 096 |
| Service charges | 94 681 | 76 480 | 70 822 | 72 710 | 65 654 |
| Investment revenue | 27 459 | 24 212 | 13 954 | 2 886 | 1 304 |
| Transfers recognised - operational | 206 391 | 202 793 | 183 236 | 170 781 | 193 491 |
| Other own revenue | 41 233 | 97 617 | 38 005 | 24 586 | 22 199 |
| Total Revenue (excluding capital transfers and contributions) | 416 868 | 456 431 | 346 974 | 312 686 | 322 744 |
| Employee costs | 114 695 | 108 750 | 91 906 | 91 447 | 88 917 |
| Remuneration of councillors | 15 880 | 15 051 | 13 929 | 13 230 | 13 299 |
| Depreciation and amortisation | 56 708 | 64 031 | 64 333 | 47 260 | 52 820 |
| Finance charges | 6 761 | 6 576 | 3 835 | 2 832 | 3 355 |
| Inventory consumed and bulk purchases | 70 260 | 59 241 | 48 926 | 50 293 | 44 109 |
| Transfers and subsidies | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other expenditure | 146 596 | 202 213 | 114 111 | 84 979 | 66 515 |
| Total Expenditure | 410 900 | 455 860 | 337 039 | 290 041 | 269 016 |
| Surplus/(Deficit) | 5 967 | 570 | 9 934 | 22 645 | 53 728 |
| Transfers and subsidies - capital (monetary allocations) | 60 942 | 39 977 | 56 821 | 30 189 | 54 830 |
| Transfers and subsidies - capital (in-kind) | - | - | - | - | - |
| Surplus/(Deficit) after capital transfers & contributions | 66 909 | 40 547 | 66 755 | 52 834 | 108 558 |
| Share of surplus/(deficit) of associate | - | - | - | - | - |
| Surplus/(Deficit) for the year | 66 909 | 40 547 | 66 755 | 52 834 | 108 558 |
Capital expenditure & funds sources
| Measure | 2024/25 | 2023/24 | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Capital expenditure | 88 834 | 71 282 | 67 770 | 62 838 | 98 446 |
| Transfers recognised - capital | 51 071 | 21 274 | 48 882 | 27 899 | 112 363 |
| Borrowing | - | - | - | - | - |
| Internally generated funds | 42 211 | 30 526 | 18 508 | -10 868 | 34 593 |
| Total sources of capital funds | 93 281 | 51 800 | 67 389 | 17 030 | 146 956 |
Financial position
| Measure | 2024/25 | 2023/24 | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total current assets | 560 942 | 539 011 | 488 806 | 417 879 | 385 344 |
| Total non current assets | 1 038 496 | 1 004 444 | 1 013 199 | 1 020 157 | 937 843 |
| Total current liabilities | 207 426 | 215 452 | 175 852 | 152 967 | 154 642 |
| Total non current liabilities | 30 299 | 42 229 | 55 356 | 38 247 | 37 812 |
| Community wealth/Equity | 1 362 221 | 1 285 738 | 1 286 272 | 1 243 005 | 1 131 009 |
Cash flows
| Measure | 2024/25 | 2023/24 | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net cash from (used) operating | 101 027 | 209 277 | 257 491 | 213 986 | 358 359 |
| Net cash from (used) investing | -96 227 | -44 564 | -77 360 | -67 597 | -174 120 |
| Net cash from (used) financing | - | - | (592) | - | (16) |
| Cash/cash equivalents at the year end | 306 259 | 425 340 | 385 275 | 341 086 | 283 555 |
Unauthorised, irregular, fruitless & wasteful expenditure
| Measure | 2024/25 | 2023/24 | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unauthorised expenditure | - | - | - | - | - |
| Irregular expenditure | 10 821 | 23 130 | 56 416 | 51 552 | 7 977 |
| Fruitless & wasteful expenditure | 4 978 | 17 | 20 | 7 223 | 2 943 |
Source: Audited Outcome A1 2026 Q1
People
Statistics South Africa, Census
| Measure | 2022 | 2016 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 132 468 | 127 168 | 123 648 |
Age structure
| Measure | 2022 | 2016 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population under 15 | 32.0% | 32.9% | 35.5% |
| Population 15 to 64 | 60.0% | 61.4% | 57.6% |
| Population over 65 | 8.0% | 5.6% | 6.9% |
Dependency ratio
| Measure | 2022 | 2016 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Per 100 (15-64) | 66.5 | 62.8 | 73.7 |
Sex ratio
| Measure | 2022 | 2016 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Males per 100 females | 89 | 89.1 | 88.9 |
Population growth
| Measure | 2022 | 2016 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Per annum | 0.7% | 0.6% | n/a |
Labour market
| Measure | 2022 | 2016 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rate (official) | n/a | n/a | 41.4 |
| Youth unemployment rate (official) 15-34 | n/a | n/a | 48.8 |
Education (aged 20 +)
| Measure | 2022 | 2016 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|
| No schooling | 17.8% | 17.2% | 22.7% |
| Matric | n/a | 22.5 | 18.8 |
| Higher education | 5.3% | 4.7% | 4.9% |
Household dynamics
| Measure | 2022 | 2016 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households | 35 953 | 33 936 | 32 284 |
| Average household size | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.8 |
| Female headed households | n/a | 51.8 | 51.3 |
| Formal dwellings | 97.0% | 90.5% | 93.2% |
| Housing owned | n/a | 62.3 | 43.9 |
Household services
| Measure | 2022 | 2016 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flush toilet connected to sewerage | 26.1% | 8.2% | 10.8% |
| Weekly refuse removal | 28.7% | 17.3% | 10.6% |
| Piped water inside dwelling | 28.2% | 5.3% | 12.3% |
| Electricity for lighting | 97.0% | 95.1% | 89.6% |
Service delivery
National Treasury, non-financial census of municipalities
Water
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 | 2019/20 | 2018/19 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Does the municipality provide? | No | No | No | No | No |
| Number of households and non-domestic customers to which provided | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Number of domestic households/delivery points | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Inside the yard | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Less than 200m from yard | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| More than 200m from yard | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Domestic households with access to free basic service | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Electricity
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 | 2019/20 | 2018/19 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Does the municipality provide? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Number of households and non-domestic customers to which provided | 36 309 | 36 066 | 35 544 | 35 022 | 34 425 |
| Domestic households with access to free basic service | 912 | 1 618 | 2 078 | 1 827 | 1 939 |
Sewerage and sanitation
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 | 2019/20 | 2018/19 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Does the municipality provide? | No | No | No | No | No |
| Number of households and non-domestic customers to which provided | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Flush toilet - public sewerage | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Flush toilet - septic tank | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ventilated pit latrine | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bucket system | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Domestic households with access to free basic service | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Solid waste services
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 | 2019/20 | 2018/19 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Does the municipality provide? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Number of households and non-domestic customers to which provided | 6 369 | 6 369 | 6 369 | 6 369 | 6 369 |
| Domestic households with access to free basic service | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Staffing
National Treasury
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 | 2019/20 | 2018/19 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employment Costs (R’000) | 91 906 | 91 447 | 88 917 | 80 262 | 74 510 |
| Remuneration of councillors (R’000) | 13 929 | 13 230 | 13 299 | 13 745 | 13 236 |
| Total Employee Positions | 307 | 291 | 256 | 240 | 305 |
| Total Vacant Employee Positions | 58 | 40 | 1 | 8 | 49 |
| Total Vacancy Percentage | 18.9% | 13.8% | 0.4% | 3.3% | 16.1% |
| Managerial Positions – S54A and S56 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Vacant Managerial Positions – S54A and S56 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
| Managerial Positions - by organogram | 26 | 26 | 24 | 22 | 28 |
| Vacant Managerial Positions - by organogram | 2 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 7 |
Published documents
Hosted by National Treasury