The name Lejweleputswa, meaning ‘gray rock’, describes the area in the Free State with a history rich in gold prospecting and mining. The Lejweleputswa district is rich in gold deposits and lies at the heart of the province’s goldfields. But Lejweleputswa’s golden qualities extend above ground as well; it’s a major maize and sunflower producer.

The Lejweleputswa District Municipality area is situated in the north western part of the Free State and borders North West to the north; Fezile Dabi and Thabo Mofutsanyane to the north east and east respectively; Motheo and Xhariep to the south; and the Northern Cape to the west. Lejweleputswa District Municipality is situated north of Mangaung Municipality in the Free State Province and is accessible from Johannesburg, Cape Town, Klerksdorp and Kimberley through one of the main country’s national roads, N1. The seat of Lejweleputswa is Welkom.

The district has the second largest area in the province with 24, 3%. It consists of the following five local municipalities with 18 as an aggregated number of towns distributed within the five local municipalities as follows;

• Masilonyana comprising of the towns of Theunissen, Verkeerdevlei, Brandfort, Soutpan and Winburg
• Tokologo, including the towns of Dealesville, Boshof and Hertzogville
• Tswelopele including the towns of Bultfontein and Hoopstad
• Matjhabeng comprising of the towns of Welkom, Ventersburg, Hennenman, Virginia, Odendalsrus and Allanridge
• Nala including the towns of Bothaville and Wesselsbron.

Demographic Profile

According to the 2007 Community Survey, it is estimated that the district has a population of approximately 639 651 people and 202 391 households. The population breakdown per municipal area is as follows;