Provincial governments of South Africa
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The nine
provinces of South Africa South Africa is divided into nine provinces. On the eve of the 1994 South African general election, 1994 general election, South Africa's former homelands, known as Bantustans, were reintegrated into the country, and the four provinces were incr ...
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 municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...
. 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 human rights and duties of its citizens, and defines the structure of t ...
. The provincial governments are structured according to a
parliamentary system A parliamentary system, or parliamentary democracy, is a form of government where the head of government (chief executive) derives their Election, democratic legitimacy from their ability to command the support ("confidence") of a majority of t ...
in which the executive is dependent on and accountable to the legislature. In each province the provincial legislature is directly elected by
proportional representation Proportional representation (PR) refers to any electoral system under which subgroups of an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. The concept applies mainly to political divisions (Political party, political parties) amon ...
, and the legislature in turn elects one of its members as
Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of govern ...
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 Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature consisting of one house or assembly that legislates and votes as one. Unicameralism has become an increasingly common type of legislature, making up nearly ...
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 system of proportional representation based on preregistered Political party, political parties, with each party being Apportionment (politics), allocated a certain number of seats Apportionm ...
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 In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...
; the most recent of such election was held on 28 May 2024. At that election, the
African National Congress The African National Congress (ANC) is a political party in South Africa. It originated as a liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid and has governed the country since 1994, when the 1994 South African general election, fir ...
(ANC), won a majority in five of the provinces, while the Democratic Alliance (DA) won a majority in the Western Cape. The provinces of
Gauteng Gauteng ( , ; Sotho-Tswana languages, Sotho-Tswana for 'place of gold'; or ) is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. Situated on the Highveld, Gauteng is the smallest province by land area in South Africa. Although Gauteng accounts f ...
,
KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN) is a Provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the government merged the Zulu people, Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu language, Zulu) and ...
and the
Northern Cape The Northern Cape ( ; ; ) is the largest and most sparsely populated Provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa. It was created in 1994 when the Cape Province was split up. Its capital is Kimberley, South Africa, Kimberley. It includes ...
are governed through coalition governments.


Executive

The head of the provincial executive is the
Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of govern ...
, 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 A term limit is a legal restriction on the number of terms a person may serve in a particular elected office. When term limits are found in presidential and semi-presidential systems they act as a method of curbing the potential for monopoly, w ...
of two terms. The legislature can force the resignation of the Premier by a
motion of no confidence A motion or vote of no confidence (or the inverse, a motion or vote of confidence) is a motion and corresponding vote thereon in a deliberative assembly (usually a legislative body) as to whether an officer (typically an executive) is deemed fi ...
. 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 South Afric ...
: Oscar Mabuyane ( ANC) * Premier of the Free State: Maqueen Letsoha-Mathae (ANC) *
Premier of Gauteng The premier of Gauteng is the head of government of the Gauteng province of South Africa. The current Premier (South Africa), premier of Gauteng is Panyaza Lesufi, a member of the African National Congress, who was elected on 6 October 2022, fo ...
:
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 Executive Council (South Africa), Member of the Executive Council (MEC) for Educat ...
(ANC) *
Premier of KwaZulu-Natal The premier of KwaZulu-Natal is the head of government of the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. The current premier of KwaZulu-Natal is Thami Ntuli, a member of the Inkatha Freedom Party. He took office on 18 June 2024. Functions In terms ...
: Thami Ntuli ( IFP) *
Premier of Limpopo The premier of Limpopo is the head of government of Limpopo province of South Africa. The current premier of Limpopo is Phophi Ramathuba, a member of the African National Congress, who was elected on 14 June 2024, following the 2024 national a ...
: Stanley Mathabatha (ANC) *
Premier of Mpumalanga The premier of Mpumalanga is the head of government of Mpumalanga province in South Africa. The current premier of Mpumalanga is Mandla Ndlovu, a member of the African National Congress. He took office on 18 June 2024. Functions In terms of th ...
:
Mandla Ndlovu Mandla Padney Ndlovu (born 21 September 1969) is a South African politician who has served as the sixth Premier of Mpumalanga since June 2024. Between October 2022 and June 2024, he served as Mpumalanga's Member of the Executive Council (MEC) for ...
(ANC) *
Premier of North West The premier of North West is the head of government of the North West (South African province), North West province of South Africa. The current premier of the North West is Lazzy Mokgosi, a member of the African National Congress, who was elec ...
: Lazzy Mokgosi (ANC) * Premier of the Northern Cape: Zamani Saul (ANC) * Premier of the Western Cape: Alan Winde ( 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 In economics, economic development (or economic and social development) is the process by which the economic well-being and quality of life of a nation, region, local community, or an individual are improved according to targeted goals and object ...
* education * environmental affairs *
finance Finance refers to monetary resources and to the study and Academic discipline, discipline of money, currency, assets and Liability (financial accounting), liabilities. As a subject of study, is a field of Business administration, Business Admin ...
*
health Health has a variety of definitions, which have been used for different purposes over time. In general, it refers to physical and emotional well-being, especially that associated with normal functioning of the human body, absent of disease, p ...
*
human settlements In geography, statistics and archaeology, a settlement, locality or populated place is a community of people living in a particular place. The complexity of a settlement can range from a minuscule number of dwellings grouped together to th ...
* 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 ensu ...
*
public works Public works are a broad category of infrastructure projects, financed and procured by a government body for recreational, employment, and health and safety uses in the greater community. They include public buildings ( municipal buildings, ...
* roads and transport * social development *
sport Sport is a physical activity or game, often Competition, competitive and organization, organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The numbe ...
and
recreation Recreation is an activity of leisure, leisure being discretionary time. The "need to do something for recreation" is an essential element of human biology and psychology. Recreational activities are often done for happiness, enjoyment, amusement, ...
* 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 An ''ex officio'' member is a member of a body (notably a board, committee, or council) who is part of it by virtue of holding another office. The term '' ex officio'' is Latin, meaning literally 'from the office', and the sense intended is 'by r ...
'' 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 The Western Cape ( ; , ) is a provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the List of South African provinces by area, fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , an ...
; 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 * Government of Gauteng * Government of KwaZulu-Natal *
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 Co ...
* Government of the Western Cape


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 A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...