Nakedi Mathews Phosa (born 1 September 1952) is a South African attorney and politician and was also an anti-

apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English: , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...

activist. He is a former

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 ...

Mpumalanga Mpumalanga () is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. The name means "East", or literally "The Place Where the Sun Rises" in the Nguni languages. Mpumalanga lies in eastern South Africa, bordering Eswatini and Mozambique. It shares bor ...

as well as a member of the National Executive Committee of 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). Phosa ran for President of the ANC in 2017 but lost to

Cyril Ramaphosa Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa (born 17 November 1952) is a South African businessman and politician serving as the 5th and current President of South Africa since 2018. A former Anti-Apartheid Movement, anti-apartheid activist and trade union leade ...

Early life and education

Phosa was born in

Mbombela Mbombela, formerly Nelspruit, is a city in northeastern South Africa. It is the capital of the Mpumalanga province. Located on the Crocodile River (Mpumalanga), Crocodile River, the city lies about by road west of the Mozambique border, east o ...

township A township is a form of human settlement or administrative subdivision. Its exact definition varies among countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, this tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Canad ...

Nelspruit Mbombela, formerly Nelspruit, is a city in northeastern South Africa. It is the capital of the Mpumalanga province. Located on the Crocodile River, the city lies about by road west of the Mozambique border, east of Johannesburg and north of ...

. However, he grew up with his grandfather in a rural area near

Potgietersrus Mokopane, formerly known as Potgietersrus, is a town in the Limpopo province of South Africa. The town name was changed to Mokopane in 2003 in honour of a local Ma Nrebele leader, King Mghombane Gheghana, who ruled the area before being conquer ...

(

Mokopane Mokopane, formerly known as Potgietersrus, is a town in the Limpopo province of South Africa. The town name was changed to Mokopane in 2003 in honour of a local Ma Nrebele leader, King Mghombane Gheghana, who ruled the area before being conquer ...

). He matriculated at Orhovelani High School in Thulamahashe,

Bushbuckridge Bushbuckridge (also known as Mapulaneng) is the main town in Bushbuckridge Local Municipality, Ehlanzeni District Municipality, Ehlanzeni District, Mpumalanga, South Africa. It grew around a trading store that opened in 1884, and is named after t ...

Political career

He was one of the first four members of the ANC to enter South Africa from exile in 1990 in order to start the process of negotiation with the

National Party National Party or Nationalist Party may refer to: Active parties * National Party of Australia, commonly known as ''The Nationals'' * Bangladesh: ** Bangladesh Nationalist Party ** Jatiya Party (Ershad) a.k.a. ''National Party (Ershad)'' * Californ ...

government. As a result of the first fully inclusive democratic elections in 1994, Phosa was appointed as the first premier of Mpumalanga, a position which he held until 1999. During his time in office, Phosa pioneered planning interaction between the private sector and government. He also spearheaded

Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela ( , ; born Rolihlahla Mandela; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist and politician who served as the first president of South Africa f ...

's reconciliation initiatives between the government and the

Afrikaans Afrikaans is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language spoken in South Africa, Namibia and to a lesser extent Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe and also Argentina where there is a group in Sarmiento, Chubut, Sarmiento that speaks the Pat ...

speaking community. Phosa was elected as a member of the National Executive Committee of the ANC in 1999. In 2001,

Tokyo Sexwale Mosima Gabriel "Tokyo" Sexwale (; born 5 March 1953) is a South African businessman, politician, anti-apartheid activist, and former political prisoner. For many years, Sexwale was imprisoned on Robben Island for his anti-apartheid activities, ...

and Phosa were investigated in connection with an alleged plot to oust Mbeki. They were cleared. During the 2007 Conference of the ANC (the 52nd National Conference) held in

Polokwane Polokwane (, meaning "Sanctuary" in Northern SothoPolokwane - The Heart of the Limpopo Provin ...

in the

Limpopo Province Limpopo () is the northernmost province of South Africa. It is named after the Limpopo River, which forms the province's western and northern borders. The term Limpopo is derived from Rivombo (Livombo/Lebombo), a group of Tsonga settlers ...

, Phosa was elected to the post of Treasurer General for the Organisation.

Business career

Since 1999 Phosa has served as a business consultant for various local and international businesses. In addition, Phosa currently holds chairman, vice-chairman or board member positions at more than ten prominent South African institutions and companies, including the

University of South Africa The University of South Africa (UNISA) is the largest university system in South Africa by enrollment. It attracts a third of all higher education students in South Africa. Through various colleges and affiliates, UNISA has over 400,000 student ...

, Afrikaanse Handelsinstituut, Special Olympics South Africa, Value Logistics, EOH (Pty) Ltd, SA Golden Leaf and Hans Merensky Holdings. On 14th April 2025 Phosa was announced as chairman of Jubilee Metals PLC, the London Stock Exchange listed metals miner and processor.

Presidential ambitions

Phosa unsuccessfully ran for the post of ANC Deputy President in 2012. Cyril Ramaphosa received 3,018 votes and was elected deputy president of the ANC, convincingly defeating Mathews Phosa, who received 470 votes and Human Settlements Minister Tokyo Sexwale, who received 463. On April 29, 2017, Phosa announced that he had accepted a nomination for the ANC Presidency and would be a candidate at the 54th ANC conference in December. On June 11, 2017, Phosa officially announced his intention to seek the Presidential nomination in December 2017.

Works

* ''Deur die oog van 'n naald'' (1996, Tafelberg)

References

External links

Official ANC website
1952 births Afrikaans-language poets Living people People from Bushbuckridge Northern Sotho people African National Congress politicians Premiers of Mpumalanga Members of the Mpumalanga Provincial Legislature South African anti-apartheid activists Members of the National Assembly of South Africa 1999–2004 {{Mpumalanga-politician-stub