What do municipal service and free basic service figures mean?
The Services tab describes whether a municipality reports providing water, electricity, sanitation or refuse removal, and the consumer units it reports serving. These figures do not establish household access, reliable supply or water safety.
By Pothole Portal · Independent interpretation of public evidence
Consumer units are not a household-access percentage
Keep total served consumer units separate from domestic units receiving free basic services. They are different measures; dividing one by the other does not create a verified household-access rate.
A municipality that does not provide a service is labelled “Not provided by this municipality.” That does not establish whether residents receive the service from a district, another authority or another provider.
Compare the published reference periods
The initial service history in Pothole Portal uses Stats SA’s P9115 workbook pairing revised 2022 and preliminary 2023 data, with the reference period as at 30 June. These are the imported publication’s years, rather than a claim that no later official publication exists.
Revisions and preliminary status matter when describing a change. Look at the provision flag, missing-value explanation, source document and reporting coverage for each observation. Provincial and national official totals are shown separately from observed municipal sums.
Sources and definitions
Source publication dates and data coverage differ. For a municipality’s figures, check the observation period and original evidence rather than assuming this guide establishes the latest available data.
Explore the evidence
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