SCORE: B Dean Macpherson immediately rolled up his sleeves and faced the construction mafia. He has also demonstrated determination and taken action to deal with hundreds of dilapidated state-owned buildings that are costing his department millions of rands in rates when they could be sold or fixed to generate income that can be used to […]
SCORE: C+ One of the first actions of the Pan Africanist Congress of Azania president on taking office was to drop his plan to scrap section 25 of the Constitution and to instead focus on using existing legislation to secure access to land. Mzwanele Nyhontsho inherited a backlog of just over 5 700 land claims from […]
SCORE: C Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams has had a mixed performance. The department allocated R2 billion through the Small Enterprise Finance Agency, benefiting more than 80 000 small businesses and cooperatives and creating nearly 100 000 jobs. She initiated programmes to enhance trade opportunities and retail placement for small enterprises. The minister also oversaw initiatives such as distributing point-of-sale equipment […]
SCORE: E Besides filling up venues for the ANC Women’s League prayer evenings and marches against gender-based violence, one has to scratch one’s head to figure out exactly what Sisisi Tolashe’s track record as minister is. She took over the department after serving in the sixth administration as the deputy minister in the presidency for […]
SCORE: B- When President Cyril Ramaphosa separated science and higher education once more, Nobuhle Nkabane took on the most nebulous of public demands: rebuilding trust. South Africa’s greatest frustrations have been borne out on campuses over the past decade. A strong student sentiment of resistance grew, while the failings of the National Student Financial Aid […]
SCORE: D- Known for her flamboyant hats and headdress, Pemmy Majodina has big shoes to fill. Her predecessor, Senzo Mchunu, drew widespread praise for his tireless efforts to turn around the department, which had been hollowed out by state capture. She is still in the early stages of her tenure and under close scrutiny and […]
SCORE: C It’s still early days for Dion George, who candidly admitted ahead of the United Nations COP29 climate summit in Baku, Azerbaijan, that he had never heard of the Conference of Parties before he assumed office in July. Hard-working, energetic and pragmatic, with a strong background in finance and economics, George is a self-proclaimed […]
SCORE: C- Maropene Ramokgopa highlighted South Africa’s progress in the 30-Year Review of Democracy report, which showed improvements in poverty reduction, access to services and advances in education. But she has been criticised for not bridging the gap between planning and execution. The National Development Plan (NDP) set ambitious goals such as achieving an annual […]
SCORE: E- Nomakhosazana Meth was appointed to the portfolio under the government of national unity, but even in those few months, her efforts to put measures in place to create jobs, alleviate poverty, safeguard workers’ rights and ensure workplace compliance were not satisfactory. During the second quarter, the unemployment rate reached a two-year high of […]
Negotiating a broad coalition to hold the political centre was perhaps the president’s finest political hour