Municipality profile, EC145

Walter Sisulu

Walter Sisulu is a local municipality in Eastern Cape. Census 2022 counted 104 213 people in 34 171 households, about 3.0 people per household. That is up 34.5% from 77 477 people in Census 2011. 94.4% of households lived in a formal dwelling and 89.7% had a flush toilet. It has the 23rd largest population of the 33 municipalities in Eastern Cape.

Eastern Cape. Category B3 in the Municipal Infrastructure Investment Framework.

People counted in Census 2022

104 213

Up 34.5% from 77 477 people in Census 2011.

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), Person indicators per municipality, Eastern Cape, page 11. Originally released 10 October 2023, revised edition. Downloaded 27 October 2026. Checked on SA Data Hub 28 October 2026. Original data: Stats SA. Any calculation shown is SA Data Hub's own processing.

Census 2011 and Census 2022

Walter Sisulu: Census 2011 and Census 2022 figures, with the change
Measure	2011	2022	Change
Population	77 477	104 213	+34.5%
Households	21 874	34 171	+56.2%
People per household	3.5	3.0	-0.5
Males per 100 females	92.2	90.3	-1.9
Aged 0 to 14	32.1%	28.3%	-3.8 pts
Aged 15 to 34	34.2%	33.2%	-1.0 pts
Aged 60 and over	8.9%	10.8%	+1.9 pts
Households in a formal dwelling	90.2%	94.4%	+4.2 pts
Households in an informal dwelling	8.6%	4.2%	-4.4 pts
Households with water from a regional or local scheme	85.6%	87.7%	+2.1 pts
Households with a flush toilet	76.6%	89.7%	+13.1 pts
Households with no toilet	9.9%	3.3%	-6.6 pts
Households cooking with electricity	79.8%	63.4%	-16.4 pts
Households cooking with gas	3.4%	31.4%	+28.0 pts
Attending school (ages 5 to 24)	21 250	26 505	+24.7%

Change is SA Data Hub's calculation from the two figures: a percentage change for counts, and the difference in percentage points (pts) for shares. Cooking shares are of households that named a cooking fuel; Stats SA leaves out “none”.

The 2011 and 2022 figures cover the same area. Stats SA, Census 2022 Municipal fact sheet (Report no. 03-01-82, revised), page 1: “Census 2011 indicators were generated based on aligned census data to current municipal boundaries (2021)”.

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), Person indicators per municipality, Eastern Cape, page 11; Distribution of population by broad age groups, Eastern Cape, page 12; General housing information per municipality (1), Eastern Cape, page 14; General housing information per municipality (2), Eastern Cape, page 15. Originally released 10 October 2023, revised edition. Downloaded 27 October 2026. Checked on SA Data Hub 28 October 2026. Original data: Stats SA. Any calculation shown is SA Data Hub's own processing.

See how all municipalities changed between Census 2011 and Census 2022

Compare with another place

Questions people ask: Which province is a municipality in? · Which municipalities grew fastest between Census 2011 and Census 2022? · How many municipalities are there in South Africa?

People

Males: 49 461
Females: 54 752
Males per 100 females: 90.3
Attending school (ages 5 to 24): 26 505

The largest age group in Walter Sisulu in 2022 was aged 15 to 34, at 33.2% of people.

Aged 0 to 1428.3%
32.1% in 2011
Aged 15 to 3433.2%
34.2% in 2011
Aged 35 to 5927.7%
24.8% in 2011
Aged 60 and over10.8%
8.9% in 2011

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), Person indicators per municipality, Eastern Cape, page 11; Distribution of population by broad age groups, Eastern Cape, page 12. Originally released 10 October 2023, revised edition. Downloaded 27 October 2026. Checked on SA Data Hub 28 October 2026. Original data: Stats SA. Any calculation shown is SA Data Hub's own processing.

Housing

Census 2022 counted 34 171 households, with about 3.0 people in each. In 2011 there were 21 874, with about 3.5 people in each.

94.4% of households in Walter Sisulu lived in a formal dwelling in 2022.

Formal dwelling94.4%
32 242 households
Informal dwelling4.2%
1 445 households
Traditional dwelling1.3%
440 households
Other0.1%
43 households

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), General housing information per municipality (1), Eastern Cape, page 14. Originally released 10 October 2023, revised edition. Downloaded 27 October 2026. Checked on SA Data Hub 28 October 2026. Original data: Stats SA. Any calculation shown is SA Data Hub's own processing.

Water, toilets and cooking

89.7% of households in Walter Sisulu had a flush toilet in 2022, and 63.4% cooked with electricity.

Water from a regional or local scheme87.7%
29 965 households. 85.6% in 2011.
Flush toilet89.7%
30 662 households. 76.6% in 2011.
No toilet3.3%
1 114 households. 9.9% in 2011.
Electricity for cooking63.4%
21 612 households. 79.8% in 2011.
Gas for cooking31.4%
10 694 households. 3.4% in 2011.

Shares of households. Cooking shares are of households that named a cooking fuel. Water from another source includes boreholes, tankers, rivers and springs.

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), General housing information per municipality (2), Eastern Cape, page 15. Originally released 10 October 2023, revised edition. Downloaded 27 October 2026. Checked on SA Data Hub 28 October 2026. Original data: Stats SA. Any calculation shown is SA Data Hub's own processing.

How it compares

Population, 2022: Walter Sisulu104 213; Average per municipality in Eastern Cape219 097Walter Sisulu has 52.4% fewer people; Average per municipality in South Africa291 209Walter Sisulu has 64.2% fewer people
People per household: Walter Sisulu3.0; Average per municipality in Eastern Cape3.9Walter Sisulu has 0.9 fewer people per household; Average per municipality in South Africa3.9Walter Sisulu has 0.9 fewer people per household
Households in a formal dwelling: Walter Sisulu94.4%; Average per municipality in Eastern Cape82.3%Walter Sisulu is 12.1 pts higher; Average per municipality in South Africa87.0%Walter Sisulu is 7.4 pts higher
Water from a regional or local scheme: Walter Sisulu87.7%; Average per municipality in Eastern Cape60.8%Walter Sisulu is 26.9 pts higher; Average per municipality in South Africa74.3%Walter Sisulu is 13.4 pts higher
Households with a flush toilet: Walter Sisulu89.7%; Average per municipality in Eastern Cape52.8%Walter Sisulu is 36.9 pts higher; Average per municipality in South Africa62.0%Walter Sisulu is 27.7 pts higher
Electricity for cooking: Walter Sisulu63.4%; Average per municipality in Eastern Cape63.5%Walter Sisulu is 0.1 pts lower; Average per municipality in South Africa66.0%Walter Sisulu is 2.6 pts lower

Each average is the simple mean of the municipal figures, so a small municipality counts as much as a large one. Gaps between shares are in percentage points (pts).

94.4% of households lived in a formal dwelling, 12.1 pts above the average per municipality in Eastern Cape.
89.7% of households had a flush toilet, 36.9 pts above the average per municipality in Eastern Cape.

Similar municipalities

The 4 other municipalities in Eastern Cape whose Census 2022 population is closest to Walter Sisulu's (104 213). Where two are equally close, the lower municipal code comes first.

Sources

Every 2011 and 2022 figure on this page is from Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43, revised edition, originally released 10 October 2023), which gives Census 2011 figures alongside Census 2022 ones. Tables for Walter Sisulu: Person indicators per municipality, Eastern Cape, page 11; Distribution of population by broad age groups, Eastern Cape, page 12; General housing information per municipality (1), Eastern Cape, page 14; General housing information per municipality (2), Eastern Cape, page 15. SA Data Hub checked them against the publication on 28 October 2026.

Changes, shares of the total, averages and similar municipalities are SA Data Hub's own calculations from those figures. Corrections are listed on the updates page.