Municipality profile, KZN253

Emadlangeni

Emadlangeni is a local municipality in KwaZulu-Natal. Census 2022 counted 36 948 people in 7 998 households, about 4.6 people per household. That is up 7.3% from 34 442 people in Census 2011. 81.7% of households lived in a formal dwelling and 43.0% had a flush toilet. It has the 42nd largest population of the 44 municipalities in KwaZulu-Natal.

KwaZulu-Natal. Category B3 in the Municipal Infrastructure Investment Framework.

People counted in Census 2022

36 948

Up 7.3% from 34 442 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 25. 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

Emadlangeni: Census 2011 and Census 2022 figures, with the change
Measure	2011	2022	Change
Population	34 442	36 948	+7.3%
Households	6 252	7 998	+27.9%
People per household	5.5	4.6	-0.9
Males per 100 females	103.1	97.0	-6.1
Aged 0 to 14	35.9%	29.3%	-6.6 pts
Aged 15 to 34	35.1%	34.8%	-0.3 pts
Aged 60 and over	7.5%	10.1%	+2.6 pts
Households in a formal dwelling	58.3%	81.7%	+23.4 pts
Households in an informal dwelling	2.4%	4.7%	+2.3 pts
Households with water from a regional or local scheme	29.3%	53.7%	+24.4 pts
Households with a flush toilet	33.2%	43.0%	+9.8 pts
Households with no toilet	15.3%	2.1%	-13.2 pts
Households cooking with electricity	40.3%	37.1%	-3.2 pts
Households cooking with gas	3.8%	27.4%	+23.6 pts
Attending school (ages 5 to 24)	11 022	9 772	-11.3%

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 25; 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: 18 189
Females: 18 759
Males per 100 females: 97.0
Attending school (ages 5 to 24): 9 772

The largest age group in Emadlangeni in 2022 was aged 15 to 34, at 34.8% of people.

Aged 0 to 1429.3%
35.9% in 2011
Aged 15 to 3434.8%
35.1% in 2011
Aged 35 to 5925.8%
21.6% in 2011
Aged 60 and over10.1%
7.5% in 2011

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), Person indicators per municipality, KwaZulu-Natal, page 25; 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 7 998 households, with about 4.6 people in each. In 2011 there were 6 252, with about 5.5 people in each.

81.7% of households in Emadlangeni lived in a formal dwelling in 2022.

Formal dwelling81.7%
6 536 households
Informal dwelling4.7%
372 households
Traditional dwelling13.5%
1 079 households
Other0.1%
10 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

43.0% of households in Emadlangeni had a flush toilet in 2022, and 37.1% cooked with electricity.

Water from a regional or local scheme53.7%
4 291 households. 29.3% in 2011.
Flush toilet43.0%
3 442 households. 33.2% in 2011.
No toilet2.1%
164 households. 15.3% in 2011.
Electricity for cooking37.1%
2 965 households. 40.3% in 2011.
Gas for cooking27.4%
2 188 households. 3.8% 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: Emadlangeni36 948; Average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal282 362Emadlangeni has 86.9% fewer people; Average per municipality in South Africa291 209Emadlangeni has 87.3% fewer people
People per household: Emadlangeni4.6; Average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal5.0Emadlangeni has 0.4 fewer people per household; Average per municipality in South Africa3.9Emadlangeni has 0.7 more people per household
Households in a formal dwelling: Emadlangeni81.7%; Average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal81.7%Emadlangeni is about the same; Average per municipality in South Africa87.0%Emadlangeni is 5.3 pts lower
Water from a regional or local scheme: Emadlangeni53.7%; Average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal60.4%Emadlangeni is 6.7 pts lower; Average per municipality in South Africa74.3%Emadlangeni is 20.6 pts lower
Households with a flush toilet: Emadlangeni43.0%; Average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal38.4%Emadlangeni is 4.6 pts higher; Average per municipality in South Africa62.0%Emadlangeni is 19.0 pts lower
Electricity for cooking: Emadlangeni37.1%; Average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal67.0%Emadlangeni is 29.9 pts lower; Average per municipality in South Africa66.0%Emadlangeni is 28.9 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).

Similar municipalities

The 4 other municipalities in KwaZulu-Natal whose Census 2022 population is closest to Emadlangeni's (36 948). 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 Emadlangeni: Person indicators per municipality, KwaZulu-Natal, page 25; 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.