Editing Bitou Local Municipality (section)

==History==
At the end of the [[apartheid]] era, the area that is today the Bitou Municipality formed part of the South Cape Regional Services Council (RSC). The town of [[Plettenberg Bay]] was governed by a municipal council elected by the [[white South African|white]] residents while the [[coloured]] residents of New Horizons were governed by a management committee subordinate to the white council. The village of [[Kurland, Western Cape|Kurland]] was also governed by a management committee, while the Griqua settlement at [[Kranshoek]] was governed by a board of management. The villages of [[Wittedrif]], [[Keurboomstrand]] and [[Nature's Valley]] were governed by local councils.

After the [[South African general election, 1994|national elections of 1994]] a process of local government transformation began, in which negotiations were held between the existing local authorities, political parties, and local community organisations. As a result of these negotiations, the existing local authorities were dissolved and the Greater Plettenberg Bay Transitional Local Council (TLC) was established to replace all of them in December 1994.

The TLC was initially made up of members nominated by the various parties to the negotiations, until May 1996 when [[1995–96 South African municipal elections|elections were held]]. At the time of these elections the South Cape District Council was established in place of the South Cape RSC, and transitional representative councils (TRCs) were elected to represent rural areas outside the TLCs on the District Council. The area that was to become Bitou Municipality included a part of the Outeniqua TRC.

At the [[South African municipal election, 2000|local elections of December 2000]] the TLCs and TRCs were dissolved and the Plettenberg Bay Municipality was established as a single local authority. At the same election the South Cape District Council was dissolved and replaced by the [[Eden District Municipality]]. In 2003 the Plettenberg Bay Municipality was renamed the Bitou Municipality.