The South African Defence Review of 2012 was a policy review conducted by a panel of experts and chaired by retired politician and former Minister of Defence,

Roelf Meyer Roelof Petrus Meyer (born 16 July 1947) is a South African politician and businessman. Originally a member of the National Party, he is known for his prominent role in the negotiations to end the apartheid system in South Africa. He later co-f ...

. The review was commissioned by

Lindiwe Sisulu Lindiwe Nonceba Sisulu (born 10 May 1954) is a South African politician, member of parliament since 1994, and member of the National Executive Committee of the African National Congress currently serving as Minister of Tourism since August 202 ...

the then

Minister of Defence and Military Veterans The Minister of Defence and Military Veterans (formerly the Minister of Defence) is a Minister (government), Minister in the Government of South Africa, who is responsible for overseeing the Department of Defence (South Africa), Department of Def ...

, in July 2011. The review was motivated by the need to correct errors and shortcomings of the previous review.

The 1998 Defence Review and its consequences

The South African Defence Review of 1998, performed by management consultants from

Deloitte and Touche Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited (), commonly referred to as Deloitte, is an international professional services network headquartered in London, England. Deloitte is the largest professional services network by revenue and number of profession ...

and which forms the basis of the current defence policy, resulted in a number of serious problems: * Aging lower rank and medically unfit personnel cannot be discharged due to enlistment contracts based on civil service employment principles. * Inadequate provision for expeditionary/foreign deployment capacity. The review assumed the SANDF would not perform any foreign deployments. However, the reality is that the SANDF has been and still is heavily engaged in

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmonizi ...

and

African Union The African Union (AU) is a continental union consisting of member states of the African Union, 55 member states located on the continent of Africa. The AU was announced in the Sirte Declaration in Sirte, Libya, on 9 September 1999, calling fo ...

peacekeeping and enforcement operations (see the

United Nations Force Intervention Brigade The United Nations Force Intervention Brigade (FIB) is a military formation which constitutes part of the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO). It was authorized by the United Nations ...

for example) in numerous countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. This oversight has necessitated expensive chartering of foreign civilian heavy airlifters to support deployed troops. * "Corporate-like" structure not suited to military operational requirements - The South African Army's brigade and divisional structures were abolished and replaced by separate "formations" and classified by role such as infantry, armour, intelligence, training, artillery, engineers, etc. This created a "silo" structural system which complicated and hindered interaction and integration of the different formations. Deane-Peter Baker of the South African

Institute for Security Studies The Institute for Security Studies, also known as ISS or ISS Africa (to distinguish itself from other similarly named institutes in other parts of the world), described itself as follows: "an African organisation which aims to enhance human se ...

said that the D&T plan, "while alleviating to an extent, the mistrust of the new South African leadership of the remaining apartheid-era

South African Defence Force The South African Defence Force (SADF) (Afrikaans: ''Suid-Afrikaanse Weermag'') comprised the armed forces of South Africa from 1957 until 1994. Shortly before the state reconstituted itself as a republic in 1961, the former Union Defence F ...

personnel in middle management positions, reduced the combat effectiveness of the Army" and by 2011 was seen as a mistake. The decision to limit the force's design of the SANDF to rely on short logistic lines for highly mechanised mobile forces in defence of national territory, which caused many supply issues during modern foreign deployments, was also considered a mistake. This is one of the major problems for the army and various solutions are being considered by the government to better equip forces deployed in out-of-area SANDF project operations. * "Top heavy" command structure (generals/troops ratio too high) According to defence minister Lindiwe Sisulu, the old report was no longer relevant to South Africa's current situation.

Mandate and terms of reference

The committee's first meeting with Minister Sisulu was on 13 July 2011 at the

Castle of Good Hope The Castle of Good Hope ( nl, Kasteel de Goede Hoop; af, Kasteel die Goeie Hoop) known locally as the Castle or Cape Town Castle is a bastion fort built in the 17th century in Cape Town, South Africa. Originally located on the coastline of T ...

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second larges ...

Review organisation

The review body was organized into two components, the review committee and a resource group. The minister faced criticism due to the inclusion of

Tony Yengeni Tony Sithembiso Yengeni (born 11 October 1954) is a South African politician. He was an anti- Apartheid activist and joined the African National Congress (ANC) in 1976 and later its armed wing, Umkhonto we Sizwe. From 1994 until 2003 he served ...

in the committee as Yengeni had been convicted and sentenced for fraud relating to arms acquisition processes. The following members were included in the review organisation:

Committee

(chairperson) - former Minister of Defence, former Minister of Constitutional Development, and Chair of Armscor *

Thandi Modise Thandi Modise (born 25 December 1959) is a South African politician who is currently serving as the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans. She was previously the Premier of the North West from 2010 to 2014, Chairperson of the National Coun ...

(deputy chairperson) - Premier of the

North West Province North West is a province of South Africa. Its capital is Mahikeng. The province is located to the west of the major population centre of Gauteng and south of Botswana. History North West was incorporated after the end of Apartheid in 1994, an ...

and former chair of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Defence (1998-2004)
Phandelani Mathoma
- General Manager of Corporate Affairs for

Old Mutual Old Mutual Limited is a pan-African investment, savings, insurance, and banking group. It is listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange, the Namibian Stock Exchange and the Botswana Stock Exchange. It was founded ...

. *

- Former Member of Parliament and Chief Whip of the ruling

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 install ...

.
Nonkonzo Molai
- Deputy Director-General: Military Veterans Empowerment and Stakeholder Relations in the Department of Military Veterans and later South African ambassador to Italy. *

Charles Nqakula Charles Nqakula (born 13 September 1942) is a South African politician who served as Minister of Defence from September 2008 to 2009. He also served as Minister for Safety and Security from May 2002 to September 2008. Nqakula is married to f ...

- former Minister of Defence.
Godfrey Giles
- Lieutenant Colonel, Chair of th
Council of Military Veterans' Organisations

Resource group

* Phillip Schöultz - Rear Admiral, South African Navy, former Director Joint Operations of the SANDF * John Gibbs - Brigadier General, Deputy Chief Director Defence Reserves. * Nic
Sendall
- Major, SANDF.
Khanyile Moses
- Former provincial police commissioner of KwaZulu-Natal. * Helmoed Heitman - Defence analyst and journalist * Tefo Keketsi - Defence analyst at Armscor.

First consultative draft

The first draft document, forming the basis of the public consultation process, was released on 12 April 2012.

Immediate capability enhancements

Immediate capability enhancements that are required to ensure that the SANDF can adequately perform its missions were identified in the consultative draft of the defence review.

Special forces

The

South African Special Forces The South African Special Forces Brigade, colloquially known as the Recces, is South Africa's principal special operations unit, specialising in various types of operations including; counter-insurgency, long-range-reconnaissance, unconventio ...

require additional weapons and systems, including a small number of dedicated aircraft for insertion/extraction missions. Additional units should be created for specialised missions.

Border security

The following needs were identified to ensure the SANDF can adequately defend South African borders. * Agile and protected patrol vehicles. * Surveillance equipment including

unmanned aerial vehicles An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft without any human pilot, crew, or passengers on board. UAVs are a component of an unmanned aircraft system (UAS), which includes adding a ground-based controlle ...

(UAVs), particularly micro-UAVs. Mobile and fixed acoustic, optronic and

radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, w ...

monitoring systems. * A "backbone" communications system integrated with tactical

air The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing for ...

ground Ground may refer to: Geology * Land, the surface of the Earth not covered by water * Soil, a mixture of clay, sand and organic matter present on the surface of the Earth Electricity * Ground (electricity), the reference point in an electrical c ...

and

police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest a ...

communication systems. * Various types of

non-lethal weapon Non-lethal weapons, also called nonlethal weapons, less-lethal weapons, less-than-lethal weapons, non-deadly weapons, compliance weapons, or pain-inducing weapons are weapons intended to be less likely to kill a living target than conventiona ...

s. * A system to collate data for intelligence led operations.

Air Space Surveillance and Protection

The review found that static, mobile and airborne radar systems to track low-flying aircraft, and aircraft with the capability to intercept low and slow flying target aircraft were required in order for the SANDF to enhance its air surveillance and protection capabilities.

Extended Maritime Security Capability

Somali Somali may refer to: Horn of Africa * Somalis, an inhabitant or ethnicity associated with Greater Somali Region ** Proto-Somali, the ancestors of modern Somalis ** Somali culture ** Somali cuisine ** Somali language, a Cushitic language ** Soma ...

-based piracy expanding into the

Mozambique channel The Mozambique Channel (french: Canal du Mozambique, mg, Lakandranon'i Mozambika, pt, Canal de Moçambique) is an arm of the Indian Ocean located between the Southeast African countries of Madagascar and Mozambique. The channel is about long ...

had been identified as a risk and an urgent reason to expand South Africa's maritime capability. Immediate requirements for

maritime patrol aircraft A maritime patrol aircraft (MPA), also known as a patrol aircraft, maritime reconnaissance aircraft, or by the older American term patrol bomber, is a fixed-wing aircraft designed to operate for long durations over water in maritime patrol rol ...

offshore patrol vessel A patrol boat (also referred to as a patrol craft, patrol ship, or patrol vessel) is a relatively small naval vessel generally designed for coastal defence, border security, or law enforcement. There are many designs for patrol boats, and the ...

s, additional shipboard helicopters and shoreline patrol equipment were identified.

Crisis Response Capability

The following requirements were identified to enable the SANDF to fulfill South Africa's regional security responsibilities: * Equipment and weapons for parachute and air-landed battalion groups. * A rejuvenation and expansion of medium airlift capability. * Heavy/long range aircraft that when combined with medium airlift aircraft, will allow the Defence Force to deploy a parachute battalion group or an air-landed battalion group within 48 hours from South Africa to anywhere within the

Southern African Development Community The Southern African Development Community (SADC) is an inter-governmental organization headquartered in Gaborone, Botswana. Its goal is to further regional socio-economic cooperation and integration as well as political and security cooper ...

(SADC) region, or from a forward base within the continental SADC region to anywhere in an adjoining country. * The establishment of

in-flight refuelling Aerial refueling, also referred to as air refueling, in-flight refueling (IFR), air-to-air refueling (AAR), and tanking, is the process of transferring aviation fuel from one aircraft (the tanker) to another (the receiver) while both aircraft ar ...

capabilities to enable effective fighter support for crisis response deployments and to extend the reach of the Special Forces.

Urgent capability enhancements

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Various areas were identified by the review in which the SANDF lacked adequate capability to perform near/medium term missions. Obsolete equipment that needed to be replaced in order for the SANDF to retain its capabilities were identified.

Infantry Combat Vehicles

Infantry combat vehicles are suited to peacekeeping missions. The 30-year-old

Ratel IFV The Ratel is a South African infantry fighting vehicle. It was the first wheeled infantry fighting vehicle to enter service worldwide and was built on a modified MAN truck chassis. The Ratel was designed in response to a South African Army specif ...

was identified as being obsolete, making maintenance difficult. It was suggested that they be replaced urgently.

Armoured Personnel Carriers

The

Casspir The Casspir is a Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicle that has been in use in South Africa since the 1980s. It is a four-wheeled, four-wheel drive vehicle, used for transport of troops. It can hold a crew of two, plus 12 additional soldiers an ...

and

Mamba APC The Mamba is a South African armoured personnel carrier designed for internal security purposes. It was developed during the late 1980s to replace the Buffel in service with the South African military and security forces. The first models were b ...

vehicles were identified as obsolete and in urgent need of replacement. The

Mfezi Ambulance The Mfezi is an armoured ambulance used by the South African Military Health Service. The name ''Mfezi'' is a Zulu word that means cobra. The snake is the emblem of the South African Operational Medical Orderly who operate and use these vehicles, ...

is also in need of replacement. A need for

Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP; ) is a term for United States military light tactical vehicles produced as part of the MRAP program that are designed specifically to withstand improvised explosive device (IED) attacks and ambushes. Th ...

patrol vehicles has arisen.

Logistic Vehicles

The currently used

SAMIL Trucks SAMIL Trucks (South African MILitary) are the standard logistical transport vehicles of the South African National Defence Force (and its predecessor the South African Defence Force). SAMILs are currently re-manufactured by Truck-Makers in Rossl ...

were identified as obsolete and in need of replacement.

Light Artillery

Recent conflicts in Africa have proven that light artillery that can be deployed quickly if needed. A 105mm long-range gun and ammunition family has been under development by

Denel Land Systems Denel Land Systems is a division of the Denel group. ) , type = , traded_as = , ISIN = , industry = Armanents Manufacturing , genre = , predecessor = , founded = , founder = , defunct = , fate = , successor = , hq_location ...

since 2012.

Aerial Weapons

Weapons for the

JAS-39 Gripen The Saab JAS 39 Gripen (; English: ''griffin'') is a light single-engine multirole fighter aircraft manufactured by the Swedish aerospace and defense company Saab AB. The Gripen has a delta wing and canard configuration with relaxed stabilit ...

BAe Hawk The BAE Systems Hawk is a British single-engine, jet-powered advanced trainer aircraft. It was first flown at Dunsfold, Surrey, in 1974 as the Hawker Siddeley Hawk, and subsequently produced by its successor companies, British Aerospace and ...

and

Denel Rooivalk The Denel Rooivalk (previously designated AH-2 and CSH-2) is an attack helicopter manufactured by Denel Aviation of South Africa. ''Rooivalk'' is Afrikaans for "Red Falcon", which refers to the lesser kestrel. Development of the type began in ...

are needed in order for them to be operated effectively.

Combat Support Ships

It was identified that future operations of the South African Navy might be extended to the Mozambique Channel. The

SAS Drakensberg (A301) SAS ''Drakensberg'' (A301) is a fleet replenishment ship (AOR) of the South African Navy (SAN), with the primary role of assisting and supporting the SAN's combat vessels at sea. Built by the (now defunct) Sandock Austral shipyard in Durban, i ...

was identified for replacement.

Force support requirements

Requirements for essential supporting equipment were also included in the consultative review. It was identified that there was a lot of obsolete or unsuitable equipment. This included water purification, field kitchen, field accommodation equipment, obsolete field workshop equipment and old field hospital equipment. The need for the re-establishment of a tactical airfield unit capability for the Air Force, in order to operate aircraft away from bases was also identified. The acquisition of munitions and explosives to allow rebuilding of ammunition stocks and effective live-fire and explosives training was also highlighted.

Public consultation process

The Public Participation Programme (PPP) consisted of a series of public meetings and consultations with stakeholder organisations at various venues around the country:

Written submissions

The committee received written submissions from various individuals and organisations.

Second draft

The second draft, based on the first, but with changes as informed by input received through the public consultation process was published on 7 September 2012. Many of the changes were criticized by the

pacifist Pacifism is the opposition or resistance to war, militarism (including conscription and mandatory military service) or violence. Pacifists generally reject theories of Just War. The word ''pacifism'' was coined by the French peace campaig ...

civil society Civil society can be understood as the "third sector" of society, distinct from government and business, and including the family and the private sphere.

Third draft

This draft was published on 10 April 2013. The draft recognised that South Africa was a significant military force in Southern Africa, however it is not considered as one of the world's major military forces.

Final version

The final edition, renamed the "2014" review due to the delay in publication, was accepted by Cabinet and submitted to Parliament in May 2014. The main points covered in the over 400-page document are: The Defence Review identified 4 main goals of the SANDF: #Defend and Protect South Africa #Safeguard South Africa #Promote Peace & Security #Developmental & other tasks To meet these goals the Review identified a number of Required Defence Capabilities: * Joint Command and Control * Defence Diplomacy * Special Forces * Special Operations forces * Medium-Combat forces - configured and maintained as a projectable, multi-roled medium-combat capability with enhanced fire-power, manoeuvreability and protection making it suitable for a range of contingencies. * Heavy-Combat forces - to deter South Africa's potential adversaries and conduct landward operations in high-threat situations and to augment the Medium-Combat forces * Maritime Operations * Air Operations * Military Health * Information Warfare capability Realising that the cost of implementing all of the recommendations was immense, the Review recommended 5 Planning milestones for implementing the Review's recommendations: * Planning Milestone 1: Arrest the decline in critical capabilities through immediate, directed interventions. * Planning Milestone 2: Re-balance and re-organise the Defence Force as the foundation for future growth. * Planning Milestone 3: Create a sustainable Defence Force that can meet current ordered defence commitments. * Planning Milestone 4: Enhance the Defence Force's capacity to respond to nascent challenges in the strategic environment. * Planning Milestone 5: Defend the Republic against insurgency and/or armed conflict to the level of limited war.

Force Design

The Review proposed a re-organisation of the combat forces.

Army

It is proposed that operational forces be grouped under a Land Command, with the combat elements organized into brigades grouped into three divisions, each of which has a specific operational focus. In addition, some specialized elements will be under direct command of the Land Command.: The three divisions are: # Mechanised Division # Motorised Division # Contingency or Special Operations Division As a short term measure it is recommended that the South African Army consolidate its existing force structure into a Land Command comprising one Division and two Brigades: # A motorised division. # A contingency (special operations) brigade. # A mechanised brigade.

Response

The review, having been accepted by cabinet and renamed ''The "2014" Review'', was submitted to parliament after the general election in May 2014. In September 2014, it was reported that official opposition, the Democratic Alliance shadow minister of defence and military veterans,

David Maynier David John Maynier (born 22 October 1968) is a South African politician who has been the Western Cape Provincial Minister of Education since May 2022 and a Member of the Western Cape Provincial Parliament since May 2019. He served as the Weste ...

and defence analyst, Helmoed Heitman had expressed concerns with the delays the review was getting and said that dealing with and implementing the defence review was a matter of urgency. By October 2014 th
Joint Standing Committee on Defence and Military Veterans
had been established with the responsibility to take the review as input to eventually produce a new defence policy.

Research papers

During the review a number of essays were produced by members of the review structure. These documents were used to inform the process. * Research Essay on a South African Methodology to Determine Level of Defence Ambition * Research Essay on Changes to South African Defence Policy Since 1910 * Research Essay on Climate Change * Research Essay on Cyber Warfare * Research Essay on Defence Ambition, Concept & Capabilities * Research Essay on International Defence Policy & Strategy Experiences * Research Essay on Private Military Companies & Mercenarism * Research Essay on Resources & Conflict * Research Essay on Security Sector Reform * Research Essay on the International Credit Crunch and Defence Spending

Notes

References

External links

* (Archived 2015-02-24)
Final Report (dated 2015)
(Archived 2020-11-25) *
Defence Review 1998
(Archived 2020-10-23) {{SANDF Military of South Africa Defence reviews and defence white papers