Beaufort West Municipality

Description: True to its claim of being South Africa’s oldest municipality, on 3 February 1837, a proclamation appeared in the Government Gazette announcing Beaufort as the first municipality in South Africa. The district had been proclaimed in 1818 by the Governor of the Cape Lord Charles Somerset and named in honour of his father, the 5th Duke of Beaufort. To avoid confusion between Fort Beaufort and Port Beaufort, the district was renamed Beaufort West in the 1860s.
Since 1994, the Beaufort West Municipality has expanded with the addition of Kwa-Mandlenkosi, as well as the rural towns of Merweville, Murraysburg and Nelspoort. The municipality, which now covers over 16 000km2, has also cemented its reputation as the centre of the agricultural district, based mainly on sheep farming and meat production. Befittingly so, thus home to the legendary Karoo Lamb. At Beaufort West Municipality we strive to provide and maintain a comfortable, safe and flourishing environment.