Departments of the Government of South Africa

The executive branch of the national government of South Africa is divided into the cabinet and the civil service, as in the Westminster system. Public administration, the day-to-day implementation of legislation and policy, is managed by government departments (including state agencies with department status), which are usually headed by permanent civil servants with the title of director-general.

Each department also has a political head, a cabinet minister, who is appointed by the president and who has ultimate oversight over and political responsibility for that department. A ministerial portfolio often includes more than one department. Even when the relationship between ministers and departments is one-to-one, the ministry is not coterminous with the department: they are legislatively and operationally distinct. The ministry usually consists of the minister, one or more deputy ministers, and a small number of advisors and other ministerial staff. According to Section 85 of the Constitution, ultimate executive authority in South Africa is vested in the president and exercised by the cabinet.

Current departments

The following list shows the departments as they have been since September 2024, when a presidential proclamation formally implemented the restructuring that followed the appointment of the multi-party third cabinet of Cyril Ramaphosa.

Minister Department Previous name(s) Minister of Agriculture Department of Agriculture Minister of Basic Education Department of Basic Education Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies Department of Communications and Digital Technologies Department of Communications Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Department of Cooperative Governance Department of Provincial and Local Government Department of Traditional Affairs Minister of Correctional Services Department of Correctional Services Minister of Defence and Military Veterans Department of DefenceDepartment of Defence and Military Veterans (until 2009) Department of Military Veterans Minister of Electricity and Energy Department of Electricity and Energy Department of Energy Minister of Employment and Labour Department of Employment and LabourDepartment of Labour (until 2019) Minister of Finance National Treasury South African Revenue Service Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries Minister of Health Department of Health Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology Department of Higher Education and Training Department of Science and Innovation Department of Science and Technology (until 2019) Minister of Home Affairs Department of Home Affairs Minister of Human Settlements Department of Human Settlements Department of Housing (until 2009) Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Department of International Relations and Cooperation Department of Foreign Affairs (until 2009) Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development Department of Justice and Constitutional Development Department of Justice Minister of Land Reform and Rural Development Department of Land Reform and Rural Development Minister of Mineral and Petroleum Resources Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources Department of Mineral Resources Minister of Police Department of PoliceDepartment of Safety and Security (until 2009)South African Police Service Independent Police Investigative Directorate Independent Complaints Directorate Civilian Secretariat for the Police Service Minister in the Presidency Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation Department of Performance Monitoring and EvaluationGovernment Communication and Information SystemSouth African Communication ServiceState Security Agency Statistics South Africa Central Statistical Service Minister in the Presidency for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities Department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities Department of Women, Children and People with Disabilities (until 2014)Department of Women (until 2019) Minister of Public Service and Administration Department of Public Service and Administration Office of the Minister for the Public Service and Administration National School of Government South African Management and Development InstitutePublic Administration Leadership and Management Academy Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure Department of Public Works and Infrastructure Department of Public Works (until 2019) Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation Department of Science, Technology and Innovation Department of Science and TechnologyDepartment of Science and Innovation Minister of Small Business Development Department of Small Business Development Minister of Social Development Department of Social Development Department of Welfare Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture Department of Sport, Arts and Culture Minister of Tourism Department of Tourism Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition Department of Trade, Industry and Competition Department of Trade and Industry Minister of Transport Department of TransportMinister of Water and SanitationDepartment of Water and SanitationDepartment of Water Affairs

History

Deputy presidents During the Government of National Unity (GNU) after the 1994 election, the Office of the Executive Deputy President and the Office of the Executive Deputy President from the Largest Minority Party were established as separate departments. The latter was abolished after the National Party pulled out of the GNU in 1996, and the former was abolished after the 1999 election which terminated the GNU.

Restructuring The following is a list of former departments which were dissolved in mergers or divisions, especially during major restructurings in 2009 and 2019: +Former departments of the South African governmentDepartmentTermMinisterSuccessorDepartment of EducationUntil 2009Minister of EducationDivided into the Department of Basic Education and the Department of Higher Education and Training in 2009.Department of Economic Development 2009–2019Minister of Economic DevelopmentCreated in 2009, and merged with the Department of Trade and Industry in 2019 to create the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition.Department of Telecommunications and Postal Services2014–2019Minister of Telecommunications and Postal ServicesCreated when split from the Department of Communications in 2014, and merged back into that department in 2019, creating the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies.Department of Provincial and Local Government (until 2009) Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (2009)Until 2009Minister of Provincial and Local Government Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional AffairsAfter being renamed briefly, divided in 2009 into the Department of Cooperative Governance and the Department of Traditional Affairs.FinanceDepartment of FinanceUntil 2000Minister of FinanceMerged to create the National Treasury in 2000.Department of State ExpenditureUntil 2000Arts, recreation, and scienceDepartment of Arts, Culture, Science and TechnologyUntil 2004Minister of Arts, Culture, Science and TechnologyDivided into the Department of Arts and Culture and the Department of Science and Technology (later renamed the Department of Science and Innovation) in 2004.Department of Arts and Culture2004–2019Minister of Arts and CultureMerged to create the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture in 2019.Department of Sport and RecreationUntil 2019Minister of Sport and RecreationMinerals and energyDepartment of Mineral and Energy Affairs (until 1998)

Department of Minerals and Energy (1998–2009)1994–2009Minister of Minerals and EnergySplit into the Department of Mineral Resources and the Department of Energy.Department of Mineral Resources 2009–2019Minister of Mineral ResourcesMerged in 2019, creating the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy. Department of Energy2009–2019Minister of EnergyDepartment of Mineral Resources and Energy2019–2024Minister of Mineral Resources and EnergySplit into the Department of Electricity and Energy and the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources.Environment, land, and agriculture Department of Environmental Affairs and TourismUntil 2009Minister of Environmental Affairs and TourismDivided into the Department of Environmental Affairs and the Department of Tourism in 2009.Department of Water Affairs and ForestryUntil 2009Minister of Water Affairs and ForestryDivided in 2009: the water section became the Department of Water Affairs (later renamed the Department of Water and Sanitation), and the forestry section merged with the Department of Agriculture to create the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.Department of AgricultureUntil 2009Minister of AgricultureMerged with the forestry section of the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry and the fisheries section of the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism in 2009, to create the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries2009–2019Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and FisheriesDivided in 2019: one section merged with the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform to become the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development; the other merged with the Department of Environmental Affairs to become the Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries.Department of Environmental Affairs 2009–2019Minister of Environmental AffairsMerged with the forestry and fisheries section of the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries in 2019, creating the Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries.Department of Land Affairs (Until 2009) Department of Rural Development and Land Reform (2009–2019)Until 2019Minister of Land Affairs Minister of Rural Development and Land ReformMerged with the agriculture section of the Department of Environmental Affairs in 2019, creating the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development. Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development2019–2024Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural DevelopmentDivided into the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Land Reform and Rural Development.IntelligenceNational Intelligence AgencyUntil 2009Minister of Intelligence ServicesMerged in 2009 to create the State Security Agency.South African Secret ServiceSouth African National Academy of Intelligence

New departments Presidents of South Africa may create new government departments. In 2009, the Department of Women, Children and People with Disabilities (later the Department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities) was created. Later that year (after the Department of Defence had briefly been renamed the Department of Defence and Military Veterans), the Department of Military Veterans was created. And, in 2014, the Department of Small Business Development was created.

See also

Cabinet of South Africa

References