Lawrence Mbatha

Lawrence Khulekani Mbatha
Born	Kimberly, Northern Cape
Allegiance	South Africa
Service / branch	South African Army
Rank	Lieutenant General
Unit	3 SA Infantry Battalion
Commands	Chief of the South African Army GOC South African National Defence Force Training Command Commandant SA Military Academy OC SA Army Gymnasium OC ASB Johannesburg

Lieutenant General Lawrence Mbatha is the current Chief of the South African Army. He was appointed to this position in April 2020, before being appointed Chief of the Army he was the General Officer Commanding of the South african National Defence Force training command and before that he was the 19th Commandant of the South African Military Academy.

Military career

He joined Umkhonto we Sizwe in 1984 and completed courses in Angola and Zimbabwe.

He became part of the South African National Defence Force in 1994 when all the forces were integrated.

In 2003 he served as Officer Commanding of the Army Support Base in Johannesburg, followed by an appointment as Personal Staff Officer to the Chief of the Army (2007) before serving as Officer Commanding of the South African Army Gymnasium in 2011. He became Commandant of the South African Military Academy in 2012-2018.