# Matabeleland South Province, Zimbabwe – Districts & Population > Source: https://wherepedia.org/zimbabwe/matabeleland-south/ Province · Zimbabwe # Matabeleland South Province Matabeleland South Province is a province of Zimbabwe. It had an estimated **876,887 people** in 2023 on 54,125 km² (about 16 per km²). Its main town is Gwanda. It is divided into 10 districts. 163 named villages and localities are recorded here, and 490 mapped services such as hospitals, banks and schools. - 876,887people (2023) - 54,125km² - 10districts - 490mapped services ## How many people live in Matabeleland South Province? Matabeleland South Province had an estimated **876,887 people** in 2023 — 5.0% of Zimbabwe, 9th of 10 provinces. There are 1,058 women for every 1,000 men (below the Zimbabwe figure of 1,077). Spread over 54,125 km², that is about **16 people per km²**, 9th of 10 provinces. 42.9% of people are children under 15 and 6.1% are 65 or older; the median age is about 18 years (it is 19 across Zimbabwe). For every 100 people of working age (15–64) there are 96 children and older people. 0–4 ****129,718** 5–9 ****129,314** 10–14 ****116,850** 15–19 ****103,377** 20–24 ****73,513** 25–29 ****54,395** 30–34 ****44,551** 35–39 ****38,109** 40–44 ****36,389** 45–49 ****34,618** 50–54 ****25,278** 55–59 ****20,089** 60–64 ****17,516** 65–69 ****16,350** 70–74 ****12,209** 75–79 ****9,749** 80+ ****14,862** Source: [UNFPA and Zimbabwe 2012 Census via OCHA HDX, population 2023 (COD-PS, CC BY-IGO)](https://data.humdata.org/dataset/cod-ps-zwe). ## Where is Matabeleland South Province? Matabeleland South Province lies in [Zimbabwe](https://wherepedia.org/zimbabwe/). It borders 4 other provinces: [Bulawayo](https://wherepedia.org/zimbabwe/bulawayo/), [Masvingo Province](https://wherepedia.org/zimbabwe/masvingo/), [Matabeleland North Province](https://wherepedia.org/zimbabwe/matabeleland-north/) and [Midlands Province](https://wherepedia.org/zimbabwe/midlands/). By area it is the 4th largest of 10 provinces in Zimbabwe. It covers 13.9% of [Zimbabwe](https://wherepedia.org/zimbabwe/). The centre of Matabeleland South Province is about 426 km in a straight line from Harare, the capital. The centre point is at 20.9179° S, 28.6458° E. Source: [Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT Central Statistics Office via OCHA HDX, administrative boundaries (COD-AB, CC BY-IGO)](https://data.humdata.org/dataset/cod-ab-zwe). ## Things to see in and around Matabeleland South Province OpenStreetMap lists 62 named sights in Matabeleland South Province: 30 attractions; 14 nature reserves; 7 archaeological sites; 3 viewpoints; 2 museums; 2 monuments; 2 memorials; 1 cave; 1 castle or fort. - Dhlodhlo Ruins · museum - Regina Ruins · museum - Bambata cave · archaeological site - Inanke Cave · archaeological site - King Mzilikazi Tomb · archaeological site - Pomongwe Cave · archaeological site - Silazwane cave · archaeological site - Tuli Ruins · archaeological site - White Rhino Shelter · archaeological site - Chief Bidi's Residence · castle or fort - Bambadzi Wildlife Management Area · nature reserve - Doddieburn Game Ranch · nature reserve - Machuchuta Wildlife Management Area · nature reserve - Maramani Wildlife Management Area · nature reserve - Matobo National Park · nature reserve - Nottingham Estate · nature reserve - Pioneer Botanical Reserve · nature reserve - Private Game Reserve · nature reserve - River Ranch · nature reserve - Sentinel Ranch · nature reserve - South Camp Botanical Reserve · nature reserve - Tolo River Botanical Reserve · nature reserve - Tshabalala Wildlife Sanctuary · nature reserve - Tuli Safari Area · nature reserve - Nottingham Estate Flycamp · viewpoint - Nswatugi Cave · viewpoint - Zhamando Hide · viewpoint - Accident · attraction - Bus · attraction - Bushmans painting · attraction …and 32 more. Source: [© OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), Geofabrik extract — named settlements](https://www.openstreetmap.org/copyright). Named attractions, museums, viewpoints, historic sites and natural features mapped in OpenStreetMap. Places of worship are not listed. ## Know before you go: Matabeleland South Province - Time zoneUTC+2, no daylight saving · Africa/Harare - CurrencyZimbabwe Gold (ZWG) - Country calling code+263 - LanguagesEnglish, Shona, South Ndebele, North Ndebele - Plug typesType G · 220 V - Driving sideLeft ### Nearest airports - Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo International Airport (BUQ) · Bulawayo100 km - Phillip Gaonwe Matante International Airport (FRW) · Francistown125 km ### Nearest railway station Gwanda Train Crosing (Ward 2), about 38 km from the centre. ### Daylight Days are longest in Dec (about 13.4 hours, sunrise around 05:18) and shortest in Jun (about 10.9 hours, sunrise around 06:39, sunset around 17:31). Month Sunrise Sunset Daylight Jan 05:35 18:52 13.3 h Feb 05:55 18:43 12.8 h Mar 06:07 18:22 12.2 h Apr 06:16 17:54 11.6 h May 06:27 17:35 11.1 h Jun 06:39 17:31 10.9 h Jul 06:42 17:40 11.0 h Aug 06:28 17:51 11.4 h Sep 06:02 17:59 11.9 h Oct 05:34 18:07 12.5 h Nov 05:17 18:23 13.1 h Dec 05:18 18:42 13.4 h Source: [GeoNames country and time-zone files (CC BY 4.0)](https://www.geonames.org/); [Wikidata (CC0) — plug types, mains voltage, driving side; retrieved 2026-11-02](https://www.wikidata.org/); [OurAirports (public domain)](https://ourairports.com/data/). Airports with scheduled passenger flights; straight-line distances. Daylight is calculated for the 15th of each month in local standard time. Check entry and visa rules with official government sources before travelling. ## Districts of Matabeleland South Province District People per km² Area km² Wards Services [Insiza District](https://wherepedia.org/zimbabwe/matabeleland-south/insiza/) 143,733 17 8,221 23 52 [Gwanda District](https://wherepedia.org/zimbabwe/matabeleland-south/gwanda/) 139,437 13 10,712 24 114 [Matobo District](https://wherepedia.org/zimbabwe/matabeleland-south/matobo/) 105,649 15 7,245 26 97 [Bulilima District](https://wherepedia.org/zimbabwe/matabeleland-south/bulilima/) 104,528 16 6,439 22 50 [Beitbridge District](https://wherepedia.org/zimbabwe/matabeleland-south/beitbridge/) 95,082 7.5 12,719 16 45 [Beitbridge Urban District](https://wherepedia.org/zimbabwe/matabeleland-south/beitbridge-urban/) 80,760 904 89 6 29 [Umzingwane District](https://wherepedia.org/zimbabwe/matabeleland-south/umzingwane/) 78,819 28 2,780 20 22 [Mangwe District](https://wherepedia.org/zimbabwe/matabeleland-south/mangwe/) 77,571 14 5,722 17 20 [Gwanda Urban District](https://wherepedia.org/zimbabwe/matabeleland-south/gwanda-urban/) 34,714 1,521 23 10 52 [Plumtree District](https://wherepedia.org/zimbabwe/matabeleland-south/plumtree/) 16,594 95 174 6 9 Source: [Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT Central Statistics Office via OCHA HDX, administrative boundaries (COD-AB, CC BY-IGO)](https://data.humdata.org/dataset/cod-ab-zwe); [UNFPA and Zimbabwe 2012 Census via OCHA HDX, population 2023 (COD-PS, CC BY-IGO)](https://data.humdata.org/dataset/cod-ps-zwe). ## Largest towns in Matabeleland South Province - Beitbridge58,574 - Gwanda26,700 - Plumtree14,460 - Shangani3,835 - Insiza2,645 - Esigodini2,228 - Filabusi1,756 - Khumalo50 Source: [GeoNames (CC BY 4.0) — settlements, natural and historic features](https://www.geonames.org/). Populations as recorded in GeoNames, which may be older than the estimates above. ## Landscape and landmarks of Matabeleland South Province Named natural and historic features inside Matabeleland South Province, from the GeoNames gazetteer. ### Water 319 rivers and streams; 50 reservoirs and tanks; 6 dams. - Abakusa - Amanzamnyama - Babuli - Bembezi - Billi - Blanket Dam - Botela - Botshamhlanga - Bubiana - Bungabunga - Chabili - Chabiwi Dam - Chalumbimbi - Chamdabalima - Chamtokwe - Chavezi - Chebe - Chenyunyi - Cherera - Chikazi - Chipizi - Chitamba Dam - Chongwe - Compound Dam …and 351 more. ### Hills and mountains 363 hills; 12 mountains; 2 peaks; 2 mountain passes. - Mwazi · 1,533 m - Aluga · 1,528 m - Mazhowe · 1,513 m - Dwaralamalombo · 1,511 m - Dunje · 1,498 m - Golati · 1,492 m - Sibizenia · 1,492 m - Koodoos Rand · 1,485 m - Ngome · 1,480 m - Pezulu · 1,474 m - Kula · 1,467 m - Mquilembegwe · 1,464 m - Trevello · 1,463 m - Ikari · 1,460 m - Shambushabe · 1,443 m - Biyoni · 1,442 m - Usher · 1,441 m - N’danyazan · 1,423 m - Umzingwane · 1,421 m - Kangali · 1,411 m - Bali · 1,409 m - Irene · 1,406 m - Kututu · 1,406 m - Dula · 1,403 m …and 355 more. ### Forests and nature 4 parks; 1 nature reserve; 1 wildlife reserve. - Lake Matopos Recreational Park - Matobo National Park - Rhodes Matopos National Park - Rhodes-Bulawayo Sanctuary - Thuli Safari Area - Umzingwane Recreational Park ### History 6 ruins; 4 historic sites; 1 fort. - Filabusi Memorial - Fort Rixon Memorial - Indaba Tree - Mbelele Cave - Mbombola - Nkankezi - Regina - Selous House Homestake - Silonkwe Ruins - Tuli - Zimbahwe Ruins ### Estates 15 estates. - Ascot Estate West - Betzeba Estate - Damara Estate - Dornoch Estate - Essexvale Estate - Fernhill Estate - Hollins Block Estate - Longridge Estate - Nata Communal Land - Pagati Estate - Sandown Estate - Springvale Estate - Whites Run Estate - Wild East Estate - Woollandale Estate ### Getting around 24 airfields. - Beit Bridge - Brunapeg Mission - Dobbieburg - Falcon College - Farvic - Gwanda - Hwali Lake - Lamulas - Madhlambudzi - Makado - Manama Mission - Mkashi Ranch - Mpandi - Ndolwane - Ngwezi - Nswazi - River Ranch Diamond Mine - Sale Pens - Solusi - Thorne - Tongwe School - Towla South - Tuli - West Nicholson Source: [GeoNames (CC BY 4.0) — settlements, natural and historic features](https://www.geonames.org/). Places of worship are not listed. Elevations are from the GeoNames terrain model and are approximate. ## Weather in Matabeleland South Province and the best time to visit In Matabeleland South Province, the warmest month is Nov (average 26 °C) and the coolest is Jul (16 °C). About 506 mm of rain falls in a year; the wettest month is Dec (109 mm) and the driest Aug (1 mm). The most comfortable months for a visit are **January to December**. - Jan - Feb - Mar - Apr - May - Jun - Jul - Aug - Sep - Oct - Nov - Dec Month Average °C Rain mm Jan 25 96 Feb 25 96 Mar 24 65 Apr 22 26 May 19 6 Jun 16 4 Jul 16 2 Aug 19 1 Sep 23 7 Oct 25 24 Nov 26 70 Dec 26 109 Source: [NASA POWER climatology, retrieved 2026-10-29](https://power.larc.nasa.gov/). ## Hospitals, banks and other services in Matabeleland South Province Places mapped inside Matabeleland South Province in open map data, by type — each number opens the full list with locations. - Hospitals19 - Banks6 - Petrol pumps8 - Hotels40 - Shopping malls8 - Schools353 - Colleges and universities15 - Pharmacies1 - Restaurants26 - Police stations14 Source: [Overture Maps places (CDLA-Permissive-2.0) and © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL)](https://overturemaps.org/). Coverage depends on what has been mapped; contact details are not shown. ## Quick answers - Where is Matabeleland South Province?In Zimbabwe - What is the population of Matabeleland South Province?876,887 (2023 estimate) - What is the median age in Matabeleland South Province?About 18 years (2023 estimate) - What is the population density of Matabeleland South Province?About 16 people per km² - What borders Matabeleland South Province?Bulawayo, Masvingo Province, Matabeleland North Province and Midlands Province - What is there to see in Matabeleland South Province?Accident, Bambadzi Wildlife Management Area, Bambata cave, Bus - What time zone is Matabeleland South Province in?UTC+2 - What currency is used in Matabeleland South Province?Zimbabwe Gold (ZWG) - What language is spoken in Matabeleland South Province?English, Shona, South Ndebele (main languages nationally) - What is the largest town in Matabeleland South Province?Beitbridge - How many reservoirs and tanks are in Matabeleland South Province?50 named in GeoNames - What is the highest point in Matabeleland South Province?Mwazi (1,533 m, GeoNames elevation model) - What is the best time to visit Matabeleland South Province?January to December - How many hospitals are in Matabeleland South Province?19 mapped - How many banks are in Matabeleland South Province?6 mapped - How many petrol pumps are in Matabeleland South Province?8 mapped - What is the P-code of Matabeleland South Province?ZW16 (OCHA common operational dataset)