Skip to main content
SA Data Hub

Municipality profile, LIM366

Bela-Bela

Bela-Bela is a local municipality in Limpopo. Census 2022 counted 64 306 people in 22 449 households, about 2.9 people per household. That is down 3.3% from 66 500 people in Census 2011. 88.7% of households lived in a formal dwelling and 79.5% had a flush toilet. It has the 22nd largest population of the 22 municipalities in Limpopo.

Limpopo. Category B3 in the Municipal Infrastructure Investment Framework.

People counted in Census 2022

64 306

Down 3.3% from 66 500 people in Census 2011.

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), Person indicators per municipality, Limpopo, page 44. Originally released , revised edition. Downloaded . Checked on SA Data Hub . Original data: Stats SA. Any calculation shown is SA Data Hub's own processing.

Census 2011 and Census 2022

Bela-Bela: Census 2011 and Census 2022 figures, with the change
Measure20112022Change
Population66 50064 306-3.3%
Households18 06822 449+24.2%
People per household3.72.9-0.8
Males per 100 females103.197.9-5.2
Aged 0 to 1428.1%23.9%-4.2 pts
Aged 15 to 3436.9%35.5%-1.4 pts
Aged 60 and over8.9%12.2%+3.3 pts
Households in a formal dwelling86.3%88.7%+2.4 pts
Households in an informal dwelling12.3%10.9%-1.4 pts
Households with water from a regional or local scheme70.5%81.0%+10.5 pts
Households with a flush toilet79.0%79.5%+0.5 pts
Households with no toilet2.4%0.6%-1.8 pts
Households cooking with electricity75.8%50.8%-25.0 pts
Households cooking with gas4.0%32.4%+28.4 pts
Attending school (ages 5 to 24)15 21313 622-10.5%

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, Limpopo, page 44; Distribution of population by broad age groups, Limpopo, page 45; General housing information per municipality (1), Limpopo, page 46; General housing information per municipality (2), Limpopo, page 47. Originally released , revised edition. Downloaded . Checked on SA Data Hub . 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
31 811
Females
32 496
Males per 100 females
97.9
Attending school (ages 5 to 24)
13 622
The largest age group in Bela-Bela in 2022 was aged 15 to 34, at 35.5% of people.
  • Aged 0 to 1423.9%

    28.1% in 2011

  • Aged 15 to 3435.5%

    36.9% in 2011

  • Aged 35 to 5928.4%

    26.1% in 2011

  • Aged 60 and over12.2%

    8.9% in 2011

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), Person indicators per municipality, Limpopo, page 44; Distribution of population by broad age groups, Limpopo, page 45. Originally released , revised edition. Downloaded . Checked on SA Data Hub . Original data: Stats SA. Any calculation shown is SA Data Hub's own processing.

Housing

Census 2022 counted 22 449 households, with about 2.9 people in each. In 2011 there were 18 068, with about 3.7 people in each.

88.7% of households in Bela-Bela lived in a formal dwelling in 2022.
  • Formal dwelling88.7%

    19 905 households

  • Informal dwelling10.9%

    2 454 households

  • Traditional dwelling0.2%

    56 households

  • Other0.2%

    34 households

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), General housing information per municipality (1), Limpopo, page 46. Originally released , revised edition. Downloaded . Checked on SA Data Hub . Original data: Stats SA. Any calculation shown is SA Data Hub's own processing.

Water, toilets and cooking

79.5% of households in Bela-Bela had a flush toilet in 2022, and 50.8% cooked with electricity.
  • Water from a regional or local scheme81.0%

    18 187 households. 70.5% in 2011.

  • Flush toilet79.5%

    17 837 households. 79.0% in 2011.

  • No toilet0.6%

    131 households. 2.4% in 2011.

  • Electricity for cooking50.8%

    11 376 households. 75.8% in 2011.

  • Gas for cooking32.4%

    7 263 households. 4.0% 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), Limpopo, page 47. Originally released , revised edition. Downloaded . Checked on SA Data Hub . Original data: Stats SA. Any calculation shown is SA Data Hub's own processing.

How it compares

Population, 2022
Bela-Bela64 306
Average per municipality in Limpopo298 760Bela-Bela has 78.5% fewer people
Average per municipality in South Africa291 209Bela-Bela has 77.9% fewer people
People per household
Bela-Bela2.9
Average per municipality in Limpopo3.5Bela-Bela has 0.6 fewer people per household
Average per municipality in South Africa3.9Bela-Bela has 1.0 fewer people per household
Households in a formal dwelling
Bela-Bela88.7%
Average per municipality in Limpopo93.9%Bela-Bela is 5.2 pts lower
Average per municipality in South Africa87.0%Bela-Bela is 1.7 pts higher
Water from a regional or local scheme
Bela-Bela81.0%
Average per municipality in Limpopo59.8%Bela-Bela is 21.2 pts higher
Average per municipality in South Africa74.3%Bela-Bela is 6.7 pts higher
Households with a flush toilet
Bela-Bela79.5%
Average per municipality in Limpopo38.9%Bela-Bela is 40.6 pts higher
Average per municipality in South Africa62.0%Bela-Bela is 17.5 pts higher
Electricity for cooking
Bela-Bela50.8%
Average per municipality in Limpopo48.1%Bela-Bela is 2.7 pts higher
Average per municipality in South Africa66.0%Bela-Bela is 15.2 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).

  • 88.7% of households lived in a formal dwelling, 5.2 pts below the average per municipality in Limpopo.
  • 79.5% of households had a flush toilet, 40.6 pts above the average per municipality in Limpopo.

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), Person indicators per municipality, Limpopo, page 44; Distribution of population by broad age groups, Limpopo, page 45; General housing information per municipality (1), Limpopo, page 46; General housing information per municipality (2), Limpopo, page 47. Originally released , revised edition. Downloaded . Checked on SA Data Hub . Original data: Stats SA. Any calculation shown is SA Data Hub's own processing.

Similar municipalities

The 4 other municipalities in Limpopo whose Census 2022 population is closest to Bela-Bela's (64 306). 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 Bela-Bela: Person indicators per municipality, Limpopo, page 44; Distribution of population by broad age groups, Limpopo, page 45; General housing information per municipality (1), Limpopo, page 46; General housing information per municipality (2), Limpopo, page 47. 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.