Impendle Local Municipality
Impendle Local Municipality is a local municipality in KwaZulu-Natal, covering 1 610 square kilometres. It falls within the uMgungundlovu District Municipality. Its main centre is Impendle.
Census 2022 counted 36 648 residents, making it the 53rd most populous of the 54 municipalities in KwaZulu-Natal and 233rd of 257 nationally. That works out to 22.8 people per square kilometre. Population is spread thinly across the area. There are 7 155 households, averaging 5.1 people each. 31.2% of residents are under 15 and 7.9% are over 65. Among residents aged 20 and over, 6.2% hold a higher education qualification and 9.8% have had no schooling.
The council has 10 seats across 3 parties, with ANC holding the largest share at 6 seats (60.0%). ANC governs the municipality. n/a serves as executive mayor, and Mr Terrence Yengwa is acting 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, Impendle scores 21.8 out of 100 for 2024/25, a grade of F, described as critical. Its most recent audit outcome was recorded as “adverse audit”. In 2024/25 it reported R51.1 million in operating revenue against R93.0 million in expenditure, an operating deficit of R41.8 million. At the last census, 18.1% of households had piped water inside the dwelling, 97.0% used electricity for lighting and 11.8% had refuse removed weekly.
Council and management
Seats: Electoral Commission, 2021 local government elections
- ANC 6 60.0%
- EFF 2 20.0%
- IFP 2 20.0%
Office bearers
Finances
National Treasury, audited outcomes
| Measure | 2024/25 | 2023/24 | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUDIT OUTCOME | Adverse audit | Financially unqualified | Financially unqualified | Financially unqualified | Financially unqualified |
Financial performance
| Measure | 2024/25 | 2023/24 | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Property rates | 13 412 | 10 175 | 8 838 | 8 372 | 6 427 |
| Service charges | 101 | 97 | 95 | 91 | 81 |
| Investment revenue | 378 | 1 004 | 299 | 246 | 595 |
| Transfers recognised - operational | 35 210 | 54 338 | 52 053 | 44 900 | 44 257 |
| Other own revenue | 2 048 | 1 989 | 4 066 | 676 | 1 664 |
| Total Revenue (excluding capital transfers and contributions) | 51 149 | 67 603 | 65 351 | 54 285 | 53 023 |
| Employee costs | 55 151 | 47 854 | 43 013 | 39 554 | 36 668 |
| Remuneration of councillors | 4 734 | 4 527 | 4 340 | 4 032 | 3 613 |
| Depreciation and amortisation | 10 852 | 10 358 | 10 356 | 12 599 | 12 839 |
| Finance charges | 781 | 362 | 223 | 314 | 135 |
| Inventory consumed and bulk purchases | 8 | 101 | 289 | 38 | 110 |
| Transfers and subsidies | 2 347 | 2 037 | 896 | 3 534 | 4 173 |
| Other expenditure | 19 093 | 26 594 | 17 718 | 13 479 | 14 206 |
| Total Expenditure | 92 967 | 91 832 | 76 836 | 73 550 | 71 745 |
| Surplus/(Deficit) | -41 818 | -24 229 | -11 484 | -19 265 | -18 721 |
| Transfers and subsidies - capital (monetary allocations) | 41 777 | 21 910 | 14 546 | 20 203 | 22 402 |
| Transfers and subsidies - capital (in-kind) | 439 | 404 | - | - | - |
| Surplus/(Deficit) after capital transfers & contributions | 398 | -1 915 | 3 061 | 938 | 3 680 |
| Share of surplus/(deficit) of associate | - | - | - | - | - |
| Surplus/(Deficit) for the year | 398 | -1 915 | 3 061 | 938 | 3 680 |
Capital expenditure & funds sources
| Measure | 2024/25 | 2023/24 | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Capital expenditure | 75 953 | 44 120 | 41 408 | 31 168 | 27 506 |
| Transfers recognised - capital | 75 056 | 41 949 | 40 094 | 29 949 | 26 206 |
| Borrowing | - | - | - | - | - |
| Internally generated funds | 897 | 2 171 | 1 314 | 1 219 | 1 301 |
| Total sources of capital funds | 75 953 | 44 120 | 41 408 | 31 168 | 27 506 |
Financial position
| Measure | 2024/25 | 2023/24 | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total current assets | 13 996 | 32 809 | 16 662 | 10 276 | 14 649 |
| Total non current assets | 186 818 | 156 711 | 145 704 | 145 022 | 131 965 |
| Total current liabilities | 59 701 | 48 165 | 21 178 | 13 911 | 11 948 |
| Total non current liabilities | 10 851 | 9 127 | 4 218 | 3 819 | 2 535 |
| Community wealth/Equity | 129 864 | 134 144 | 133 909 | 136 629 | 128 451 |
Cash flows
| Measure | 2024/25 | 2023/24 | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net cash from (used) operating | 127 053 | 185 710 | 84 467 | 34 180 | -165 |
| Net cash from (used) investing | - | - | - | - | - |
| Net cash from (used) financing | - | - | - | - | - |
| Cash/cash equivalents at the year end | 66 685 | 192 268 | 91 025 | 37 129 | -165 |
Unauthorised, irregular, fruitless & wasteful expenditure
| Measure | 2024/25 | 2023/24 | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unauthorised expenditure | 49 297 | 40 988 | 10 305 | 29 567 | 15 962 |
| Irregular expenditure | 12 743 | 17 934 | 6 270 | 11 953 | 3 985 |
| Fruitless & wasteful expenditure | 1 | 132 | 20 | 5 | - |
Source: Audited Outcome A1 2026 Q1
People
Statistics South Africa, Census
| Measure | 2022 | 2016 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 36 648 | 29 526 | 37 226 |
Age structure
| Measure | 2022 | 2016 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population under 15 | 31.2% | 43.8% | 37.3% |
| Population 15 to 64 | 60.9% | 51.6% | 56.4% |
| Population over 65 | 7.9% | 4.6% | 6.3% |
Dependency ratio
| Measure | 2022 | 2016 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Per 100 (15-64) | 64.1 | 93.9 | 77.4 |
Sex ratio
| Measure | 2022 | 2016 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Males per 100 females | 90.6 | 94.8 | 89.1 |
Population growth
| Measure | 2022 | 2016 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Per annum | -0.2% | -0.7% | n/a |
Labour market
| Measure | 2022 | 2016 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rate (official) | n/a | n/a | n/a |
| Youth unemployment rate (official) 15-34 | n/a | n/a | n/a |
Education (aged 20 +)
| Measure | 2022 | 2016 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|
| No schooling | 9.8% | 7.6% | 14.1% |
| Matric | n/a | 27.7 | 22.4 |
| Higher education | 6.2% | 2.7% | 3.9% |
Household dynamics
| Measure | 2022 | 2016 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households | 7 155 | 7 011 | 9 128 |
| Average household size | 5.1 | 4.2 | 4.1 |
| Female headed households | n/a | 57.8 | 56.5 |
| Formal dwellings | 76.0% | 58.2% | 43.9% |
| Housing owned | n/a | 93 | 37.6 |
Household services
| Measure | 2022 | 2016 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flush toilet connected to sewerage | 15.8% | 1.9% | 7.7% |
| Weekly refuse removal | 11.8% | 1.0% | 2.7% |
| Piped water inside dwelling | 18.1% | 3.4% | 14.7% |
| Electricity for lighting | 97.0% | 95.4% | 83.6% |
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? | No | No | No | No | No |
| Number of households and non-domestic customers to which provided | 6 975 | 6 975 | 6 975 | 6 975 | 6 975 |
| Domestic households with access to free basic service | 2 097 | 2 103 | 2 400 | 2 765 | 2 739 |
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 | 68 | 68 | 68 | 86 | 86 |
| Domestic households with access to free basic service | 0 | 0 | 61 | 61 | 61 |
Staffing
National Treasury
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 | 2019/20 | 2018/19 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employment Costs (R’000) | 43 013 | 39 554 | 36 668 | 31 619 | 27 929 |
| Remuneration of councillors (R’000) | 4 340 | 4 032 | 3 613 | 2 574 | 2 490 |
| Total Employee Positions | 130 | 169 | 155 | 116 | 170 |
| Total Vacant Employee Positions | 0 | 3 | 1 | 7 | 61 |
| Total Vacancy Percentage | 0.0% | 1.8% | 0.7% | 6.0% | 35.9% |
| Managerial Positions – S54A and S56 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 |
| Vacant Managerial Positions – S54A and S56 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Managerial Positions - by organogram | 8 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 0 |
| Vacant Managerial Positions - by organogram | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
Published documents
Hosted by National Treasury