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The nine provinces of South Africa are governed by provincial governments which form the second layer of government, between the national government and the
municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...
. The provincial governments are established, and their structure defined, by Chapter Six of the
Constitution of South Africa The Constitution of South Africa is the supreme law of the Republic of South Africa. It provides the legal foundation for the existence of the republic, it sets out the rights and duties of its citizens, and defines the structure of the Govern ...
. The provincial governments are structured according to a parliamentary system in which the executive is dependent on and accountable to the legislature. In each province the
provincial legislature In South Africa, a provincial legislature is the legislative branch of the government of a province.'' Chapter 6: Provinces'', Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996. The provincial legislatures are unicameral and vary in size from 30 ...
is directly elected by proportional representation, and the legislature in turn elects one of its members as Premier to head the executive. The Premier appoints an Executive Council (a cabinet), consisting of members of the legislature, to administer the various
departments Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...
of the provincial administration. The powers of the provincial governments are circumscribed by the national constitution, which limits them to certain listed "functional areas". In some areas the provincial governments' powers are concurrent with those of the national government, while in other areas the provincial governments have exclusive powers. The constitution prescribes a principle of "co-operative government" whereby the various layers of government must co-ordinate their actions and legislation; it also lays down a series of rules for resolving conflicts between national and provincial legislation.


Legislature

Each province has a unicameral provincial legislature, varying in size from 30 to 80 members depending on the population of the province. The members of the provincial legislature are elected by
party-list proportional representation Party-list proportional representation (list-PR) is a subset of proportional representation electoral systems in which multiple candidates are elected (e.g., elections to parliament) through their position on an electoral list. They can also be us ...
for a usual term of five years, although under certain circumstances the legislature may be dissolved before its term expires. By convention elections to the provincial legislatures are held on the same day as elections to the National Assembly; the most recent such election was held on 8 May 2019. At that election the
African National Congress The African National Congress (ANC) is a social-democratic political party in South Africa. A liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid, it has governed the country since 1994, when the first post-apartheid election installe ...
(ANC) won a majority in eight of the provinces, while the Democratic Alliance (DA) won a majority in the Western Cape.


Executive

The head of the provincial executive is the Premier, who is elected by the provincial legislature from amongst its members; frequently the Premier will be the provincial leader of the majority party. The term of office of the Premier is the same as that of the legislature (normally five years) with a term limit of two terms. The legislature can force the resignation of the Premier by a
motion of no confidence A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or mana ...
. If the Premiership is vacant and the legislature fails to elect a new Premier within 30 days, the legislature is dissolved and an election is called. the nine Premiers are: *
Premier of the Eastern Cape The Premier of the Eastern Cape is the head of government of the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. The current Premier of the Eastern Cape is Oscar Mabuyane, a member of the African National Congress, who was elected in the 2019 election ...
:
Oscar Mabuyane Lubabalo Oscar Mabuyane (born 24 February 1974) is a South African politician who has been serving as the seventh Premier of the Eastern Cape since May 2019. He was previously Member of the Executive Council (MEC) for Economic Development, Enviro ...
(
ANC The African National Congress (ANC) is a social-democratic political party in South Africa. A liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid, it has governed the country since 1994, when the first post-apartheid election install ...
) *
Premier of the Free State The Premier of the Free State is the head of government of the Free State province of South Africa. The current Premier of the Free State is Sisi Ntombela, a member of the African National Congress, who was appointed in March 2018. She took of ...
:
Sisi Ntombela Sefora Hixsonia "Sisi" Ntombela (born 16 April 1957) is a South African politician who is the 6th Premier of the Free State and a Member of the Free State Provincial Legislature. She previously served as the Free State MEC for Cooperative Gover ...
(ANC) * Premier of Gauteng:
Panyaza Lesufi Andrek "Panyaza" Lesufi (born 4 September 1968) is a South African politician who was appointed the seventh Premier of Gauteng in October 2022. He was previously Member of the Executive Council (MEC) for Education in the Gauteng provincial gover ...
(ANC) * Premier of KwaZulu-Natal: Nomusa Dube-Ncube (ANC) * Premier of Limpopo: Stanley Mathabatha (ANC) * Premier of Mpumalanga: Refilwe Mtsweni-Tsipane (ANC) * Premier of North West: Job Mokgoro (ANC) *
Premier of the Northern Cape The Premier of the Northern Cape is the head of government of the Northern Cape province of South Africa. The current Premier of the Northern Cape is Zamani Saul, a member of the African National Congress, who was elected in the 2019 election. ...
: Zamani Saul (ANC) *
Premier of the Western Cape The Premier of the Western Cape is the head of government of the Western Cape province of South Africa. The current Premier of the Western Cape is Alan Winde, a member of the Democratic Alliance, who was elected in the 2019 election. He took o ...
:
Alan Winde Alan Richard Winde (born 18 March 1965) is a South African politician and businessman. He is the 8th and current Premier of the Western Cape, having held the position since 2019. He has been a Member of the Western Cape Provincial Parliament s ...
( DA) The Premier appoints an Executive Council (a cabinet) of five to ten members of the provincial legislature. The Members of the Executive Council (or MECs) are responsible for the various
departments Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...
of the provincial administration. Because the responsibilities of the provincial governments are limited to those listed in the constitution, the portfolios are quite similar across the provinces. Common MEC portfolios and departmental responsibilities include: * agriculture * arts and culture * economic development * education * environmental affairs * finance * health *
human settlements In geography, statistics and archaeology, a settlement, locality or populated place is a community in which people live. The complexity of a settlement can range from a minuscule number of dwellings grouped together to the largest of citi ...
* local government * police or
public safety Public security or public safety is the prevention of and protection from events that could endanger the safety and security of the public from significant danger, injury, or property damage. It is often conducted by a state government to ensure ...
* public works * roads and transport * social development * sport and recreation * tourism Several of these areas may be combined in one department and the portfolio of one MEC.


Judiciary

{{see also, High Courts of South Africa South Africa has a single national court system, and the administration of justice is the responsibility of the national government. At present the jurisdictional boundaries of the High Courts do not correspond entirely with the provincial boundaries; the Superior Courts Bill currently before Parliament will rationalise the courts so that there is a single High Court division in each province. The provincial executive does play a role in the selection of High Court judges, as the Premier of a province is ''ex officio'' a member of the Judicial Service Commission when it deals with matters relating to a High Court that sits in that province.


Provincial constitutions

A provincial legislature can, by a two-thirds majority vote, adopt a constitution for the province; it is not necessary to do so, as the national constitution provides a complete structure for provincial government. A provincial constitution must be consistent with the national constitution except that it can provide for different structures and procedures for the executive and the legislature. The only province that has adopted a constitution is the Western Cape; in doing so it chose to rename its legislature the Provincial Parliament. It also calls its Executive Council the Provincial Cabinet, and the MECs are called Provincial Ministers.


See also

*
Government of the Eastern Cape The Eastern Cape province of South Africa is governed in a parliamentary system in which the people elect the provincial legislature and the legislature, in turn, elects the Premier as head of the executive. The Premier leads an Executive Counci ...
*
Government of Gauteng The government of Gauteng province in South Africa consists of a unicameral legislature elected by proportional representation, and an executive branch headed by a Premier who is elected by the legislature. Legislature The provincial legisl ...
*
Government of the Northern Cape The Northern Cape province of South Africa is governed in a parliamentary system in which the people elect the provincial legislature and the legislature, in turn, elects the Premier as head of the executive. The Premier leads an Executive Counci ...
*
Government of the Western Cape The Western Cape province of South Africa is governed in a parliamentary system in which the people elect the Provincial Parliament, and the parliament elects the Premier as head of the executive. The Premier leads a cabinet of provincial mini ...


External links


South African Government Online: Provincial government and departments

Provincial Government Handbook of South Africa

Eastern Cape provincial government

Free State provincial government

Gauteng provincial government

KwaZulu-Natal provincial government

Limpopo provincial government

Mpumalanga provincial government

Northern Cape provincial government

North West provincial government

Western Cape provincial government
Government of South Africa Government South Africa