Minister of International Relations and Cooperation
Encyclopedia
The Minister of International Relations and Cooperation is the foreign minister
of the South African government
, with political responsibility for South Africa's foreign relations
and the Department of International Relations and Cooperation. The present minister is Maite Nkoana-Mashabane
, who was appointed by President Jacob Zuma
on 10 May 2009.
After the creation of the Union of South Africa
as a British dominion in 1910 its foreign relations were initially carried out by the British Foreign Office. However, in 1927 the South African government established a Department of External Affairs. From 1927 until 1955 the Prime Minister also served as foreign minister.
Foreign minister
A Minister of Foreign Affairs, or foreign minister, is a cabinet minister who helps form the foreign policy of a sovereign state. The foreign minister is often regarded as the most senior ministerial position below that of the head of government . It is often granted to the deputy prime minister in...
of the South African government
Government of South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a constitutional democracy with a three-tier system of government and an independent judiciary, operating in a nearly unique system that combines aspects of parliamentary and presidential systems. Legislative authority is held by the Parliament of South Africa...
, with political responsibility for South Africa's foreign relations
Foreign relations of South Africa
The foreign relations of South Africa have spanned from the country's time as Dominion and later Realm of the British Empire to its isolationist policies under Apartheid to its position as a responsible international actor taking a key role in Africa....
and the Department of International Relations and Cooperation. The present minister is Maite Nkoana-Mashabane
Maite Nkoana-Mashabane
Maite Emily Nkoana-Mashabane is a South African politician. She has been South Africa's Minister of International Relations and Cooperation since May 2009, taking over from Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma. She is also a member of the National Executive Committee of the African National Congress...
, who was appointed by President Jacob Zuma
Jacob Zuma
Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma is the President of South Africa, elected by parliament following his party's victory in the 2009 general election....
on 10 May 2009.
After the creation of the Union of South Africa
Union of South Africa
The Union of South Africa is the historic predecessor to the present-day Republic of South Africa. It came into being on 31 May 1910 with the unification of the previously separate colonies of the Cape, Natal, Transvaal and the Orange Free State...
as a British dominion in 1910 its foreign relations were initially carried out by the British Foreign Office. However, in 1927 the South African government established a Department of External Affairs. From 1927 until 1955 the Prime Minister also served as foreign minister.
List of foreign ministers of South Africa
| Minister | Party | Incumbency | Under |
|---|---|---|---|
| J. B. M. Hertzog | NP National Party (South Africa) The National Party is a former political party in South Africa. Founded in 1914, it was the governing party of the country from 4 June 1948 until 9 May 1994. Members of the National Party were sometimes known as Nationalists or Nats. Its policies included apartheid, the establishment of a... /UP United Party (South Africa) The United Party was South Africa's ruling political party between 1934 and 1948. It was formed by a merger of most of Prime Minister Barry Hertzog's National Party with the rival South African Party of Jan Smuts, plus the remnants of the Unionist Party... |
1927–1939 | The foreign ministry was held by the Prime Minister |
| Jan Smuts Jan Smuts Jan Christiaan Smuts, OM, CH, ED, KC, FRS, PC was a prominent South African and British Commonwealth statesman, military leader and philosopher. In addition to holding various cabinet posts, he served as Prime Minister of the Union of South Africa from 1919 until 1924 and from 1939 until 1948... |
UP | 1939–1948 | |
| D. F. Malan | NP | 1948–1954 | |
| J. G. Strijdom | NP | 1954–1955 | |
| Eric Louw Eric Louw Eric Hendrik Louw was a South African diplomat and politician. Although a controversial and often undiplomatic figure, he was respected by admirers and critics for his unflinching courage and brilliant wit.-Early life:... |
NP National Party (South Africa) The National Party is a former political party in South Africa. Founded in 1914, it was the governing party of the country from 4 June 1948 until 9 May 1994. Members of the National Party were sometimes known as Nationalists or Nats. Its policies included apartheid, the establishment of a... |
1955–1958 | Government of Prime Minister J. G. Strijdom |
| 1958–1964 | Government of Prime Minister Hendrik Verwoerd | ||
| Hilgard Muller Hilgard Muller Hilgard Muller, was a South African politician of the National Party, Mayor of Pretoria in 1953–1955, elected an MP in 1958, appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs after the resignation of Eric Louw in 1964. He relinquished both posts in 1977... |
NP | 1964–1966 | |
| 1966–1977 | Government of Prime Minister B. J. Vorster | ||
| Pik Botha Pik Botha Roelof Frederik "Pik" Botha is a former South African politician who served as the country's foreign minister in the last years of the apartheid era... |
NP | 1977–1978 | |
| 1978–1984 | Government of Prime Minister P. W. Botha | ||
| 1984–1989 | Government of State President State President of South Africa State President, or Staatspresident in Afrikaans, was the title of South Africa's head of state from 1961 to 1994. The office was established when the country became a republic in 1961, and Queen Elizabeth II ceased to be head of state... P. W. Botha |
||
| 1989–1994 | Government of State President F. W. de Klerk | ||
| Alfred Nzo | ANC African National Congress The African National Congress is South Africa's governing Africanist political party, supported by its tripartite alliance with the Congress of South African Trade Unions and the South African Communist Party , since the establishment of non-racial democracy in April 1994. It defines itself as a... |
1994–1999 | Government of President President of South Africa The President of the Republic of South Africa is the head of state and head of government under South Africa's Constitution. From 1961 to 1994, the head of state was called the State President.... Nelson Mandela Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing... |
| Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma Nkosazana Clarice Dlamini-Zuma is a South African politician and was an anti-apartheid activist. She was South Africa's Minister of Health from 1994 to 1999, under President Nelson Mandela, then Minister of Foreign Affairs from 17 June 1999 to 10 May 2009, under Presidents Thabo Mbeki and Kgalema... |
ANC | 1999–2008 | Government of President Thabo Mbeki Thabo Mbeki Thabo Mvuyelwa Mbeki is a South African politician who served two terms as the second post-apartheid President of South Africa from 14 June 1999 to 24 September 2008. He is also the brother of Moeletsi Mbeki... |
| 2008–2009 | Government of President Kgalema Motlanthe | ||
| Maite Nkoana-Mashabane Maite Nkoana-Mashabane Maite Emily Nkoana-Mashabane is a South African politician. She has been South Africa's Minister of International Relations and Cooperation since May 2009, taking over from Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma. She is also a member of the National Executive Committee of the African National Congress... |
ANC | 2009– | Government of President Jacob Zuma Jacob Zuma Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma is the President of South Africa, elected by parliament following his party's victory in the 2009 general election.... |