Demographically, about 96.9% of the overall population is black African, while 2.4% is white and 0.2% Indian. This constitutes to the somewhat diverse and rich cultural aspect of the area, having a minimum of four mainly spoken languages being; English, Afrikaans, Zulu and Sotho.
The area has strong history from the Apartheid era and also boosts monumental sites relating to it. Over the years a new set of culture was born with the fusion of the different ethnic groups through work spaces, residential areas, schools, leisure and even religion.
Dipaleseng Local Municipality forms part of Gert Sibande District Municipality with neighbouring municipalities being Lekwa and Govan Mbeki to the East, Gauteng to the west and Free State Province to the south. Its major town, Balfour is situated approximately 80km south east of Johannesburg. The three major urban nodes in the area are Balfour/Siyathemba, Greylingstad/Nthoroane and Grootvlei. The major roads that transverse the municipal area are; the N3 from Johannesburg to Durban and the R23 from Pretoria to Volksrust.
Dipaleseng is well placed to benefit from regional economic growth given its strategic location at the nexus of major tourism, logistics, farming and industrial routes, and as the seat of government in Balfour.
Dipaleseng centrally located in the Gert Sibande District region, of Mpumalanga halfway between Johannesburg and the harbours of Durban and Richards Bay, contributes to the export of manufactured goods, as well as for distribution to the Gauteng market.
Dipaleseng is also provided with good access infrastructure to these areas, which includes road and rail networks. It is situated on the national rail route between the Durban Container Terminal and Town Deep in Gauteng, and has within its confines, major rail exchange yards, supporting railway stations and extensive goods conversion/warehousing opportunities.
