Bilene Macia District is a

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municipa ...

of Gaza Province in south-western

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

. Its principal town is Macia. The district is located at the south of the province, and borders with Chókwè District in the north,

Xai-Xai District Xai-Xai District is a district of Gaza Province in south-western Mozambique. The administrative center of the district is Chongoene. The district is located in the south of the province, and borders with Chibuto District in the north, Manjacaze ...

in the east, and

Magude District Magude District is a district of Maputo Province in southern Mozambique. The principal town is Magude. The district is located in the north of the province, and borders with Massingir and Chókwè Districts of Gaza Province in the north, Manhi ...

Maputo Province Maputo Province is a province of Mozambique; the province excludes the city of Maputo (which comprises a separate province). The province has an area of and a population of 1,968,906 (2017 census). Its capital is the city of Matola. Geography ...

in the west. In the south, the district is bounded by the Indian Ocean. The area of the district is . It has a population of 151911 as of 2007.

Geography

The rivers in the district belong to the drainage basins of the

Komati River The Komati River, also known as the Inkomati River or Incomati River (in Mozambique, from Portuguese Rio Incomati), is a river in South Africa, Eswatini and Mozambique. Originating in north-western Eswatini, it is joined by the Crocodile R ...

and the Munhuane River, a major left tributary of the Komati. There are three permanent lakes in the district Lake Chuali, Lake Pave, and Lake Sacative. The climate is tropical semi-arid in the interior and tropical humid at the coast. The annual rainfall at the coast is around , and in the interior it varies between and .

Demographics

As of 2005, 43% of the population of the district was younger than 15 years. 58% of the population spoke Portuguese. The most common mothertongue among the population was Tsonga. 60% were analphabetic, mostly women.

Administrative divisions

The district is divided into six postos, Chissano (five localities), Macuane (three localities), Mazivila (three localities), Messano (two localities), Praia do Bilene (one locality), and Vila da Macia (one locality).

Economy

3% of the households in the district have access to electricity. The district has a tourist potential, due to relative proximity to

Maputo Maputo (), formerly named Lourenço Marques until 1976, is the capital, and largest city of Mozambique. Located near the southern end of the country, it is within of the borders with Eswatini and South Africa. The city has a population of 1,0 ...

. Out of 165 existing lodges, 102 are in operation.

Agriculture

In the district, there are 30,000 farms with, on average of land. The main agricultural products are corn,

cassava ''Manihot esculenta'', commonly called cassava (), manioc, or yuca (among numerous regional names), is a woody shrub of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, native to South America. Although a perennial plant, cassava is extensively cultivated ...

cowpea The cowpea (''Vigna unguiculata'') is an annual herbaceous legume from the genus ''Vigna''. Its tolerance for sandy soil and low rainfall have made it an important crop in the semiarid regions across Africa and Asia. It requires very few inputs, ...

, peanut, and sweet potato.

Transportation

There is a road network in the district which includes a stretch of the national road EN1, as well as of national road between Macia and Chibaquelene and of national road between Macia and Bilene.

References

{{Coord, 25, 02, S, 33, 06, E, display=title, region:MZ_type:city_source:GNS-enwiki Districts in Gaza Province