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The Hibiscus Coast Municipality is a new organization formed as the result of the amalgamation of five transitional local councils that existed prior to the December 05 2000 local government elections. The municipality has its administrative seat in Port Shepstone and covers an area of approximately 90 km of coastline, comprising of 21 beaches and extends 30 km inland, covering a vast, rural area under the leadership of six tribal authorities.
With a population of just over 200 000, the region relies heavily on agriculture and tourism as the main economic driver and the existence of four beaches boasting the highly acclaimed blue flag status, augers well for many local people who derive an income from this industry.
The municipal area of jurisdiction can be divided in to two distinct halves, with the coastal, well-developed strip and the deep rural, highly under developed component. This situation poses a great challenge to the municipality and it is believed this area requires careful attention.
The rural component, the biggest section of the municipality, is home to beautiful valleys and hills that make for beautiful viewing. The area also consists of thousands acres of agricultural land which produces tons of sugar cane, banana and tea. This agricultural sector provides employment to hundreds of people who came from the rural areas and it has improved in the last few years.
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