Dr AB Xuma Local Municipality lies in Chris Hani District, Eastern Cape, with 132,799 people counted in the 2022 census across 2,483.9 km². The seat is Ngcobo. The municipality’s registry code, EC137, still carries its former name, Engcobo, which the council renamed in 2022 to honour Dr AB Xuma, a former African National Congress president.
Ngcobo is an isiXhosa term for a sweet grass found in the area.
Towns and Villages in Dr AB Xuma
| Place | Type | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Ngcobo | Seat | Administrative centre (also called Engcobo) |
| Clarkebury | Village | Historic mission station |
Other recorded settlements and localities:
- All Saints
- All Saints Nek
- Bangweni
- Bekileni
- Beyele
- Bodini
- Bumbane
- Caba
- Cefane
- Cobosi
- Coghlan
- Cwecweni
- Debera
- Egoso
- Elabafazi
- Engxogi
- Equtubeni
- Gingqi
- Goboti
- Goso
- Gqaga
- Gqobonco
- Gqubonco
- Gqutyini
- Gulandoda
- Hart Dale
- Jojweni
- Kanye
- Katinyanga
- Komkulu
- Ku-Hlaba
- Ku-Manzimdaka
- Ku-Ndaca
- Ku-Nonyentu
- KuBeyele
- KuBojane
- KuDidi
- KuGilanqodo
- KuManyisani
- KuMaqanda
- KuMtala
- KuMtukuma
- KuNqumakala
- KuNtsimba
- KuPhahla
- KuQengqeleka
- KuQoba
- KuTshatshu
- Kwa-Dabula
- Kwa-Gcina
- Kwa-Mtyatyamba
- Kwa-Nzolo
- Kwa-Xoxo
- Kwa-Zwelinzima
- KwaBinca
- KwaDlomo
- KwaFane
- KwaGxubana
- KwaMajija
- KwaMaya
- KwaMbekeni
- KwaMhaga
- KwaNdima
- KwaNzolo
- KwaQoba
- Kwelesha
- Langdon
- Lixeni
- Lookout
- Lower Flucwecwe
- Lower Gqobonco
- Lower Mnyolo
- Lubisi
- Lucwecwe
- Luembo
- Lugolwenie
- Luhewini
- Madela
- Madladleni
- Maerman
- Mahlubini
- Mamfengwini
- Mandlaneni
- Mangxongweni
- Manuneni
- Manzana
- Maqomeni
- Matolweni
- Mbashe
- Mbilini
- Mboleni
- Mdeni
- Mgangweni
- Mgwalana
- Mhlahlane
- Mhlopekazi
- Mjanyana
- Mkanzi
- Mkunjana
- Mntintloni
- Mnyolo
- Mpindweni
- Mqabo
- Mqonci
- Mtaleni
- Mtini
- Munjana
- Ncaluken
- Ndlunkulu
- Nduka
- Ngapezulu
- Ngcacu
- Ngojn
- Ngqokoto
- Ngquru
- Ngqutura
- Ngwangwane
- Ngxangxasi
- Ngxeko
- Nkondla
- Nkondlo
- Nkwenkwana
- Nkwenkwazi
- Nokomis
- Nqantosi
- Nqutuha
- Nqutwaneni
- Ntabamakwenkwe
- Ntakwendlcla
- Ntibane
- Ntwashini
- Phillipsdale
- Pulangweni
- Qebe
- Qota
- Qutubeni
- Qutyini
- Rocky Valley
- Roma
- Saint Alban’s Mission
- Sentubi
- Sigangeni
- Sigingini
- Sikobeni
- Sikungwini
- Singumeni
- Sitebe
- Sitoleni
- Sitoza
- Springs
- Sundwane
- Taleni
- Tora
- Tsalaaba
- Tsalaba
- Upper Mnyolo
- Whitmore
- Xokonxa
- Xuka
- Xuka Drift
- Zabasa
- Zadungahi
- Zadungeni
Geography
The municipality sits in hilly country along the Mbashe and Xuka river valleys, in the eastern reaches of Chris Hani District. Steep grassland ridges and forest patches around Clarkebury and All Saints characterise the landscape, which drains toward the Mbashe River and, further downstream, the Wild Coast in neighbouring Mbhashe. It borders Mbhashe in Amathole District and other Chris Hani municipalities including Sakhisizwe and Intsika Yethu.
Demographics
Population fell from 155,513 in 2011 to 132,799 in 2022. Almost all residents (94.7%) speak isiXhosa, and the municipality remains overwhelmingly rural, with Ngcobo the only settlement classed as urban.
Economy and Local Life
Communal farming and livestock keeping support most rural households across the hilly grazing land that dominates the municipality. Ngcobo town serves as the retail and government-services centre, hosting a hospital, banks and weekly markets that draw residents from villages throughout the area, including those around the historic Clarkebury mission station.
History
Ngcobo grew around the Clarkebury mission station, founded by Wesleyan missionaries in the 1830s and later attended by a young Nelson Mandela, who described his time there in his autobiography. The municipality was known as Engcobo until 2022, when the council formally adopted the name Dr AB Xuma to honour the ANC president who led the organisation through the 1940s and helped shape its post-war programme of action.
Getting There
Ngcobo lies on the R61, between Mthatha and Queenstown (Komani). Mthatha, about 55 km east, has the nearest airport, with the N2 national road providing the main route further afield.
The municipality is one of eight making up Chris Hani District, and shares much of the district’s mix of communal-tenure farming and small-town retail economies with neighbours such as Sakhisizwe and Intsika Yethu.
FAQ
What is the seat of Dr AB Xuma Local Municipality?
Ngcobo (also called Engcobo).
What was this municipality called before?
Engcobo Local Municipality, renamed in 2022.
What district is it in?
Chris Hani District Municipality, Eastern Cape.
What is the population?
132,799 people (2022 census), down from 155,513 in 2011.