Municipality profile, KZN224

Impendle

Impendle is a local municipality in KwaZulu-Natal. Census 2022 counted 36 648 people in 7 155 households, about 5.1 people per household. That is down 1.6% from 37 226 people in Census 2011. 76.0% of households lived in a formal dwelling and 15.8% had a flush toilet. It has the 43rd largest population of the 44 municipalities in KwaZulu-Natal.

KwaZulu-Natal. Category B4 in the Municipal Infrastructure Investment Framework.

People counted in Census 2022

36 648

Down 1.6% from 37 226 people in Census 2011.

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), Person indicators per municipality, KwaZulu-Natal, page 24. 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

Impendle: Census 2011 and Census 2022 figures, with the change
Measure	2011	2022	Change
Population	37 226	36 648	-1.6%
Households	9 128	7 155	-21.6%
People per household	4.1	5.1	+1.0
Males per 100 females	89.1	90.6	+1.5
Aged 0 to 14	37.3%	31.2%	-6.1 pts
Aged 15 to 34	33.3%	34.0%	+0.7 pts
Aged 60 and over	9.8%	11.5%	+1.7 pts
Households in a formal dwelling	43.9%	76.0%	+32.1 pts
Households in an informal dwelling	0.3%	0.8%	+0.5 pts
Households with water from a regional or local scheme	27.7%	40.8%	+13.1 pts
Households with a flush toilet	7.7%	15.8%	+8.1 pts
Households with no toilet	1.7%	0.6%	-1.1 pts
Households cooking with electricity	46.9%	74.3%	+27.4 pts
Households cooking with gas	3.4%	11.9%	+8.5 pts
Attending school (ages 5 to 24)	12 093	10 847	-10.3%

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, KwaZulu-Natal, page 24; Distribution of population by broad age groups, KwaZulu-Natal, page 26; General housing information per municipality (1), KwaZulu-Natal, page 28; General housing information per municipality (2), KwaZulu-Natal, page 30. 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: 17 422
Females: 19 226
Males per 100 females: 90.6
Attending school (ages 5 to 24): 10 847

The largest age group in Impendle in 2022 was aged 15 to 34, at 34.0% of people.

Aged 0 to 1431.2%
37.3% in 2011
Aged 15 to 3434.0%
33.3% in 2011
Aged 35 to 5923.3%
19.6% in 2011
Aged 60 and over11.5%
9.8% in 2011

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), Person indicators per municipality, KwaZulu-Natal, page 24; Distribution of population by broad age groups, KwaZulu-Natal, page 26. 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 7 155 households, with about 5.1 people in each. In 2011 there were 9 128, with about 4.1 people in each.

76.0% of households in Impendle lived in a formal dwelling in 2022.

Formal dwelling76.0%
5 436 households
Informal dwelling0.8%
54 households
Traditional dwelling23.0%
1 645 households
Other0.3%
21 households

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), General housing information per municipality (1), KwaZulu-Natal, page 28. 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

15.8% of households in Impendle had a flush toilet in 2022, and 74.3% cooked with electricity.

Water from a regional or local scheme40.8%
2 919 households. 27.7% in 2011.
Flush toilet15.8%
1 129 households. 7.7% in 2011.
No toilet0.6%
41 households. 1.7% in 2011.
Electricity for cooking74.3%
5 306 households. 46.9% in 2011.
Gas for cooking11.9%
851 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), KwaZulu-Natal, page 30. 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: Impendle36 648; Average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal282 362Impendle has 87.0% fewer people; Average per municipality in South Africa291 209Impendle has 87.4% fewer people
People per household: Impendle5.1; Average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal5.0Impendle has 0.1 more people per household; Average per municipality in South Africa3.9Impendle has 1.2 more people per household
Households in a formal dwelling: Impendle76.0%; Average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal81.7%Impendle is 5.7 pts lower; Average per municipality in South Africa87.0%Impendle is 11.0 pts lower
Water from a regional or local scheme: Impendle40.8%; Average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal60.4%Impendle is 19.6 pts lower; Average per municipality in South Africa74.3%Impendle is 33.5 pts lower
Households with a flush toilet: Impendle15.8%; Average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal38.4%Impendle is 22.6 pts lower; Average per municipality in South Africa62.0%Impendle is 46.2 pts lower
Electricity for cooking: Impendle74.3%; Average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal67.0%Impendle is 7.3 pts higher; Average per municipality in South Africa66.0%Impendle is 8.3 pts higher

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).

76.0% of households lived in a formal dwelling, 5.7 pts below the average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal.
15.8% of households had a flush toilet, 22.6 pts below the average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal.

Similar municipalities

The 4 other municipalities in KwaZulu-Natal whose Census 2022 population is closest to Impendle's (36 648). 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 Impendle: Person indicators per municipality, KwaZulu-Natal, page 24; Distribution of population by broad age groups, KwaZulu-Natal, page 26; General housing information per municipality (1), KwaZulu-Natal, page 28; General housing information per municipality (2), KwaZulu-Natal, page 30. 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.