By Tannur Anders
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced his new cabinet on Sunday after two weeks of intense and at times acrimonious negotiations between the political parties in the country’s coalition government.
The make-up of the cabinet was closely watched as a reflection of how the African National Congress (ANC) intends to share power after losing its parliamentary majority in the May 29 election.
In all, seven parties received ministerial posts in the 32-member cabinet. Twenty ministers came from the ANC, six from the Democratic Alliance (DA), two from the Inkatha Freedom Party and one each from the GOOD, Freedom Front Plus, Patriotic Alliance and Pan Africanist Congress of Azania parties.
Below are the people chosen to lead some of the key portfolios in the cabinet.
AGRICULTURE
DA leader John Steenhuisen, 48, was named agriculture minister.
Although the ANC and DA have sharply antagonistic views on other issues, agriculture is one policy area where they do not diverge hugely.
“The DA’s agricultural approach is no different from what the ANC has in its books,” according to Wandile Sihlobo, a leading South African agricultural economist.
Agriculture only contributes about 2% to the country’s gross domestic product, but it is an important sector because it is a large employer and foreign exchange earner.
Major South African agricultural exports include citrus fruits, maize and wine.
FINANCE
The ANC’s Enoch Godongwana, 67, was re-appointed finance minister, a decision welcomed by investors and the business community as a sign fiscal policy will stay broadly the same.
Godongwana has held the post since 2021 after his predecessor, Tito Mboweni, resigned.
He has tried to narrow the country’s budget deficit and curb rising debt levels.
During his tenure the government achieved a primary budget surplus for the first time in more than a decade.
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND COOPERATION
Ronald Lamola, 40, of the ANC was appointed minister of international relations and cooperation, after being justice and correctional services minister since 2019.
Lamola, a former ANC youth leader and lawyer by training, will now oversee South Africa’s foreign policy.
As justice minister Lamola played an important role launching South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice.
MINERAL AND PETROLEUM RESOURCES
Gwede Mantashe, 69, was appointed minister of mineral and petroleum resources.
A gruff former trade union leader and mineworker, Mantashe is best known for being sceptical about renewable energy and an avid supporter of coal.
Mantashe had been minister of mineral resources and energy since 2019, but Ramaphosa decided to remove energy from his portfolio and add the petroleum component. Mantashe is national chairperson of the ANC.
ELECTRICITY AND ENERGY
The ANC’s Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, 49, was made electricity and energy minister.
Electricity was a new portfolio created last year as part of a more targeted approach to end crippling power cuts.
South Africa saw 335 days with power cuts in 2023, a record, but this year there has been a marked improvement with more than three months in a row without rolling blackouts.
TRADE, INDUSTRY AND COMPETITION
Parks Tau, 54, was appointed minister of trade, industry and competition.
The post was a point of contention between the DA and the ANC in cabinet negotiations, as local media reported that the ANC had backtracked on an offer to give the DA the portfolio, threatening to derail their deal to cooperate.
The ministry is seen as particularly significant because it oversees the government’s flagship policy of boosting Black South Africans’ participation in the economy, as well as the competition commission, which scrutinises mergers and acquisitions.
The DA wants to scrap some of the ANC’s Black empowerment programmes, saying they have not worked and have mostly benefited a politically-connected elite.
Tau is a former ANC mayor of Johannesburg.
PUBLIC WORKS AND INFRASTRUCTURE
The DA’s Dean Macpherson, 39, was appointed minister of public works and infrastructure.
In the lead-up to this year’s election the DA campaigned heavily on its track record on delivering public services in the Western Cape province, where it has been in power since 2009.
In contrast to crumbling infrastructure elsewhere, the Western Cape has done measurably better.
DEFENCE AND MILITARY VETERANS
The ANC’s Angie Motshekga, 69, has taken the helm of the department of defence and military veterans. She was formerly basic education minister.
South African troops are currently deployed in the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighbouring Mozambique, helping fight rebel groups in those countries.
POLICE
The ANC’s Senzo Mchunu, 66, was appointed police minister, after serving as minister of water and sanitation since 2021.
South Africa has one of the highest murder rates in the world, and crime featured high on the list of voter concerns in opinion polls this year.
HOME AFFAIRS
The DA’s Leon Schreiber, 35, was appointed minister of home affairs.
The government department that falls under this portfolio is responsible for issuing identity documents including birth, death and marriage certificates to South African citizens. It also oversees policy on immigration, refugees and asylum seekers.
The state of the department has been widely criticised by researchers and opposition parties including the DA. Problems include corrupt officials fraudulently issuing documents, and a long backlog of visa, permit and refugee status applications.
(Additional reporting by Kopano Gumbi and Nelson Banya; Editing by Alexander Winning and Sharon Singleton)
