Daggakraal Explained

Daggakraal
Pushpin Map:South Africa Mpumalanga#South Africa
Coordinates:-27.117°N 29.967°W
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:South Africa
Subdivision Type1:Province
Subdivision Name1:Mpumalanga
Subdivision Type2:District
Subdivision Name2:Gert Sibande
Subdivision Type3:Municipality
Subdivision Name3:Pixley Ka Seme
Subdivision Type4:Main Place
Established Title:Established
Leader Title:Councillor
Area Footnotes:[1]
Area Total Km2:64.43
Population Total:17378
Population As Of:2011
Population Density Km2:auto
Demographics Type1:Racial makeup (2011)
Demographics1 Title1:Black African
Demographics1 Info1:99.3%
Demographics1 Title2:Coloured
Demographics1 Info2:0.1%
Demographics1 Title3:Indian/Asian
Demographics1 Info3:0.3%
Demographics1 Title4:White
Demographics1 Info4:0.1%
Demographics1 Title5:Other
Demographics1 Info5:0.1%
Demographics Type2:First languages (2011)
Demographics2 Title1:Zulu
Demographics2 Info1:90.7%
Demographics2 Title2:Swazi
Demographics2 Info2:4.0%
Demographics2 Title3:Sotho
Demographics2 Info3:2.5%
Demographics2 Title5:Other
Demographics2 Info5:2.8%
Timezone1:SAST
Utc Offset1:+2
Postal Code Type:Postal code (street)
Postal2 Code Type:PO box
Area Code Type:Area code

Daggakraal, "one of South Africa's most impoverished and isolated communities with plenty of unmined mineral resources",[2] is a town in Gert Sibande District Municipality near Volksrust in the outskirts of Mpumalanga province, South Africa.[3] The town had about 1,450 households in 2014.[4] There is no means of production a number of failed state projects aimed at uplifting people.

Daggakraal area code 2492 has two clinics namely Sinqobile CHC in Daggakraal no 3 and Daggakraal CHC in Sinqobile A. There are four primary schools namely Sizenzele Primary School, Hambani Primary School, Daggakraal Primary School and Ethembeni Primary School and two high schools are Nalithuba Secondary School and Seme Secondary School named after ANC founder Dr. Pixley Ka Isaka Seme.

Founding

Pixley Ka Isaka Seme, President of the African National Congress from 1930 to 1936, was born in Durban in 1881.[5] In 1911, he established the "South African Native Farmers Association" in order to encourage black farm labourers from the Free State to buy land in the area and become commercial farmers themselves, and thus to attain personal independence. This initiative led to the settling of Daggakraal in 1912, and so worried the white government that it formulated and enacted the Natives Land Act of 1913, barring black people from owning land in South Africa. However, the black farmers who had bought property in Daggakraal retained the land they had purchased. These farmers later rented residential stands to families that relocated from the Eastern Transvaal. Seme owned two farms in the area.

Post-apartheid

In 1997, a piggery, grain and livestock farm was handed to the community as part of South Africa's land reform programme. As a result of infighting amongst the beneficiaries and misappropriation of funds, the bequests are now unproductive. A soccer stadium which began construction in 1991 was never completed due to embezzlement.

A statue of Dr. Pixley Ka. Isaka Seme was erected and unveiled in the Daggakraal Number 02 front opposite Daggakraal Police Station and Ethembeni Primary School on 31 March 2012.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Main Place Daggakraal . Census 2011.
  2. News: Struggle hero honoured. Yende. Sizwe Sama. 12 January 2004. News24. 15 May 2017.
  3. Web site: Pixley Ka Seme Local Municipality. 15 May 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20171003094159/http://www.pixleykaseme.co.za/index.php/home/demographics/about-daggakraal. 2017-10-03. dead.
  4. News: Going home 20 years later: Everything–and nothing–changes. Yende. Sizwe Sama. 5 June 2014. News24. 15 May 2017.
  5. News: Pixley Ka Seme stature unveiled. 2012-03-31. South African Broadcasting Corporation. 2017-05-15. https://web.archive.org/web/20170820011640/http://www.sabc.co.za/news/a/046a09804ab76f4aa718efa0088ad6ed/PixleyundefinedKaundefinedSemeundefinedstatureundefinedunveiled-20123103. 2017-08-20. dead.