Esigodini, previously known as Essexvale, is a town in the

Matabeleland South Province Matabeleland South is a province in southwestern Zimbabwe. With a population of 683,893 as of the 2012 Zimbabwean census, it is the country's least populous province. After Matabeleland North, it is Zimbabwe's second-least densely populated p ...

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...

. It is the administrative centre for

Umzingwane District Umzingwane is a district in the northern part of Matabeleland South province in Zimbabwe. It was formerly known as Esigodini District and before 1982 as Essexvale District. Its governing seat is located in the village of Umzingwane. Geography ...

, one of the seven administrative districts in Matabeleland South. It was originally an estate of

Frederick Selous Frederick Courteney Selous, DSO (; 31 December 1851 – 4 January 1917) was a British explorer, officer, professional hunter, and conservationist, famous for his exploits in Southeast Africa. His real-life adventures inspired Sir Henry Rider ...

Location

Esigodini is situated approximately , by road, southeast of

Bulawayo Bulawayo (, ; Ndebele: ''Bulawayo'') is the second largest city in Zimbabwe, and the largest city in the country's Matabeleland region. The city's population is disputed; the 2022 census listed it at 665,940, while the Bulawayo City Council cl ...

, the nearest large city and largest urban centre in the province. The town sits along the Bulawayo–Beitbridge Road, approximately northwest of the town of

Gwanda Gwanda is a town in Zimbabwe. It is the capital of the province of Matabeleland South, one of the ten administrative provinces in the country. It is also the district capital of Gwanda District, one of the seven administrative districts in t ...

. The geographical coordinates of the town are:20°17'33.0"S, 28°56'17.0"E (Latitude:-20.292500; Longitude:28.938056). Esigodini is located at an average elevation of , above

mean sea level There are several kinds of mean in mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. ...

Overview

Esigodini is the district capital of Umzingwane Rural District Council, which is responsible for running the affairs of the district as a whole. The trading centre is surrounded by ranches and mixed farms. The surrounding communities also host

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...

dams A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, ...

and

tungsten Tungsten, or wolfram, is a chemical element with the symbol W and atomic number 74. Tungsten is a rare metal found naturally on Earth almost exclusively as compounds with other elements. It was identified as a new element in 1781 and first isolat ...

mines. The area has many rivers, although it suffers from long dry season and drought is common in this area. Average annual rainfall is approximately .

Population

According to the 1982 population census, Esigodini had a population of 1,492. The 2012 national population census and household survey enumerated 2,228 inhabitants in the town.

History

The town was officially known as Essexvale until 1982, when the name changed to Esigodini. It was founded in 1894. Prior to the coming of European settlers, the surrounding area was settled by ''Rozi Moyo people'', who had moved here from the area near

Schools

Nearby schools include

Falcon College Falcon College (or simply Falcon) is an independent boarding school for boys and girls aged 12–18 in the southern Matabeleland region of Zimbabwe. It was founded in 1954 near Essexvale, Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland (now Esigodini, Zim ...

, a renowned secondary school for boys and

Mzingwane High School Mzingwane High School is a boys-only government secondary school located in the heart of Matebeleland South as it is the Crown of the Province and it is the only school left in Matebeleland South which is a boys' school. Founded in 1921 in Tsho ...

, Mvuthu High School, while primary schools are Bayethe, Bezha, Bonjeni, Carlisle, Dobi, Doyana, Dula, Esigodini, Glen Grey, Godlwayo Annex, How Mine, Impu, Inyankuni, Irisvale, Isotsha, Kumbudzi, Longfield, Malungwane, Matopo, Matshetshe, Mawabeni, Mbalabala, Mbizingwe, Mlomoliwoto, Mpisini, Mpofini, Mtshede, Munkula, Mvuthu, . Also nearby, is the Roman Catholic mission school known as ''Sacred Heart Girls School'', a boarding secondary school. This school was founded in 2014 and is run by the Sisters Of The Precious Blood who fall under the

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bulawayo The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bulawayo ( la, Bulauaien(sis)) is the Metropolitan See for the Ecclesiastical province of Bulawayo in Zimbabwe. History * January 4, 1931: Established as Mission “sui iuris” of Bulawayo from the Apostolic P ...

, and came mainly from Germany shortly after the Second World War.

References

External links

Zanu-PF Heads Meet In Esigodini
As of 15 October 2018. {{Matabeleland South Province Umzingwane District Populated places in Matabeleland South Province