Mfuleni is a relatively new
township
A township is a form of human settlement or administrative subdivision. Its exact definition varies among countries.
Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, this tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Canad ...
about 32 kilometres from central
Cape Town
Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...
,
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
. It is a predominantly Black township, although there are also some
Coloured
Coloureds () are multiracial people in South Africa, Namibia and, to a smaller extent, Zimbabwe and Zambia. Their ancestry descends from the interracial mixing that occurred between Europeans, Africans and Asians. Interracial mixing in South ...
members of the community.
Mfuleni is a suburb of
Blue Downs
Blue Downs is a town in the Western Cape, South Africa. It forms part of the Eastern Suburbs Zone of the City of Cape Town situated on the eastern outskirts of the city and is also located on the Cape Flats, a flat expanse of land east of Cape Tow ...
area and is close to the sprawling township of
Khayelitsha
Khayelitsha () is a township (South Africa), township in Western Cape, South Africa, on the Cape Flats in the City of Cape Town, City of Cape Town Metropolitan Municipality. The name is Xhosa language, Xhosa for ''New Home''. It is reputed to ...
and also next to the new suburb of
Malibu Village. Around 52,300 people live in this township. Most were moved there from the late 1990s following flooding and fires in different townships across the
Western Cape
The Western Cape ( ; , ) is a provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the List of South African provinces by area, fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , an ...
, such as
Philippi
Philippi (; , ''Phílippoi'') was a major Greek city northwest of the nearby island, Thasos. Its original name was Crenides (, ''Krēnĩdes'' "Fountains") after its establishment by Thasian colonists in 360/359 BC. The city was renamed by Phili ...
,
Nyanga and Khayelitsha. Hence, the mixed nature of the community here. Unemployment,
HIV/AIDS
The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...
and crime are some of the most pressing problems in this poor township.
Recently, the Department of Local government and Housing with its partners established a new housing project which built an additional 165 houses.
[http://www.westerncape.gov.za/Text/2008/9/mfuleni_project_compressed.pdf ]
References
{{Cape Town suburbs
Townships in the Western Cape
Populated places in the City of Cape Town