Gamagara in the Northern Cape spends the most money on its residents out of all the municipalities in South Africa. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to Stats SA’s latest data, South Africa’s 257 municipalities spent R532 billion in 2022, including operational and capital expenditures. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
If considering the census 2022 national population figure of 62 million, municipalities spent, on average, R8,572 per resident.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On a provincial level, municipalities in Gauteng spent the highest per resident, at R12,060, followed by the Western Cape’s R10,411 per resident.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Limpopo registered the lowest value at R4,429 spent per resident. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Zooming in to individual municipalities, however, the analysis shows that spending per resident is highest in the Gamagara municipality in the Northern Cape at R23,201 spent per resident.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Tokologo in the Free State comes in second at R14,749 per resident, close to R9,000 less than Gamagara. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
On the other end of the scale, the Nongoma municipality in KwaZulu-Natal only spends R1,389 per resident.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Gamagara’s outlier status isn’t a once-off occurrence. In a similar study using 2016 data, the municipality also recorded the highest per capita spending. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Stats SA said that Gamagara recorded a high value for the line item of \u2018inventories losses\/write-downs\u2019 in 2022, which made a huge contribution to its total expenditure. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Another reason for the expenditure could be the town of Kathu, whose economy is mainly driven by Sishen, Kumba Iron Ore’s flagship mine. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The town thus attracts skilled workers and high-income earners. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to the National Treasury’s Spacial Economic Activity Data dashboard, Gamagara is the sixth richest municipality in South Africa, based on the most recent data, which shows an average taxable income per resident of R27,929. <\/p>\n\n\n\n