| Hibberdene | |
| Pushpin Map: | South Africa KwaZulu-Natal#South Africa |
| Coordinates: | -30.5722°N 30.5722°W |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | South Africa |
| Subdivision Type1: | Province |
| Subdivision Name1: | KwaZulu-Natal |
| Subdivision Type2: | District |
| Subdivision Name2: | Ugu |
| Subdivision Type3: | Municipality |
| Subdivision Name3: | Ray Nkonyeni |
| Subdivision Type4: | Main Place |
| Established Title: | Established |
| Leader Title: | Councillor |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Km2: | 14.26 |
| Population Total: | 4037 |
| Population As Of: | 2011 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Demographics Type1: | Racial makeup (2011) |
| Demographics1 Title1: | Black African |
| Demographics1 Info1: | 67.1% |
| Demographics1 Title2: | Coloured |
| Demographics1 Info2: | 1.2% |
| Demographics1 Title3: | Indian/Asian |
| Demographics1 Info3: | 1.8% |
| Demographics1 Title4: | White |
| Demographics1 Info4: | 29.4% |
| Demographics1 Title5: | Other |
| Demographics1 Info5: | 0.4% |
| Demographics Type2: | First languages (2011) |
| Demographics2 Title1: | Zulu |
| Demographics2 Info1: | 60.9% |
| Demographics2 Title2: | English |
| Demographics2 Info2: | 18.1% |
| Demographics2 Title3: | Afrikaans |
| Demographics2 Info3: | 15.8% |
| Demographics2 Title4: | Xhosa |
| Demographics2 Info4: | 3.2% |
| Demographics2 Title5: | Other |
| Demographics2 Info5: | 2.0% |
| Timezone1: | SAST |
| Utc Offset1: | +2 |
| Postal Code Type: | Postal code (street) |
| Postal Code: | 4220 |
| Postal2 Code Type: | PO box |
| Postal2 Code: | 4220 |
| Area Code Type: | Area code |
| Area Code: | 039 |
Hibberdene is situated on a coastal hillside between the uMhlungwa River to the north and the uMzimayi River to the south, both of which drain into the Indian Ocean. The town was named after C. Maxwell-Hibberd, the former postmaster-general of Natal.
Previously an independent municipality and part of the defunct Hibiscus Coast Local Municipality, Hibberdene now forms part of the Ray Nkonyeni Local Municipality and the larger Ugu District Municipality.
As the 2024 national government elections near, there have recently been several demarcation proposals made by the Municipal Demarcation Board (MDB) to relocate Ward 13 of the Ray Nkonyeni Local Municipality which includes Hibberdene and its neighbouring settlements of Woodgrange-on-Sea, Umzumbe (Umzumbe Village), Fairview/Fairview Mission and eNtaba to the adjoining Umzumbe Local Municipality.
However, Umzumbe Village and Fairview would still remain part of Ray Nkonyeni. It has also been highlighted that the relocation of most of Ward 13 to Umzumbe Municipality is in a bid to stimulate economic activity in the Greater Umzumbe area, a rural municipality plagued with administrative mismanagement, high levels of unemployment and little economic and social development. The reason for the relocation is also attributed to the fact that Hibberdene serves as the nearest urban service centre to the Greater Umzumbe area. A final decision on the demarcation proposals is yet to made regarding the relocation of Hibberdene to the Umzumbe Municipality.[2] [3]
The 2011 census divided the main area of Hibberdene into seven “sub places”: Hibberdene proper (pop. 790), the coastal areas of Catalina (pop. 455) to the north, Woodgrange-on-Sea (pop. 292) to the immediate south, Umzumbe (pop. 366) to the far south and the inland rural areas of Fairview (pop. 1,606) and Fairview Mission (pop. 527) to the west.[4]
Hibberdene serves as a shopping centre for the small settlements and countryside surrounding it such as Mthwalume and Mathulini. The town centre of Hibberdene located adjacent the R102 road includes a shopping centre, Hibberdene Village Mall, as well as a PicknPay store and a number of other retailers, hardware stores and local businesses.
Similarly to most towns along the South Coast, Hibberdene mostly depends on tourism for its small-scale economy. Situated at the gateway to the Hibiscus Coast, Hibberdene is popularly known as an affordable holiday destination and for its beaches. Hibberdene has five popular beaches, four of which are netted and thus are safe for swimming. Hibberdene's beaches are popular because of the warm Indian Ocean flowing across its shoreline, making diving, snorkelling and scuba diving very pleasant. Two of its beaches, Hibberdene Beach and Umzumbe Beach are accredited with the international Blue Flag beach status.[5] [6] [7]
The N2 is a toll freeway bypassing Hibberdene from Durban in the north to Port Shepstone in the south. The R102 is the main road through Hibberdene, passing through from Pennington in the north to Umzumbe in the south and provides access to the N2 at exit 72. The R102 between Hibberdene and Port Shepstone is commonly used by motorists wishing to avoid tolling on the N2 in Port Shepstone.
A twice daily shuttle bus stops in Hibberdene connecting the town with Margate, Port Shepstone, Durban and King Shaka International Airport.