Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma
Nkosazana Clarice Dlamini-Zuma (born 27 January 1949), sometimes referred to by her initials NDZ, is a South African politician and anti-apartheid activist, currently serving as Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs.[1] She was South Africa's Minister of Health from 1994 to 1999, under President Nelson Mandela, Minister of Foreign Affairs, under presidents Thabo Mbeki and Kgalema Motlanthe, Minister of Home Affairs in the first term of former President Jacob Zuma (with whom she was previously married for 16 years) and Minister in the Presidency for the National Planning Commission for Policy and Evaluation under President Cyril Ramaphosa.[2]
On 15 July 2012, Dlamini-Zuma was elected by the African Union Commission as its chairperson, making her the first woman to lead the organisation or its predecessor, the Organisation of African Unity;[3] she took office on 15 October 2012. On 30 January 2017, she was replaced as Chairperson of the AU Commission by Chadian Foreign Minister Moussa Faki.[4]
She ran for the position of President of the African National Congress in 2017, but was defeated by Cyril Ramaphosa at the 54th National Conference of the African National Congress.
Early years
Nkosazana Clarice Dlamini, a Zulu, was born in Natal, the eldest of eight children. She completed high school at the Amanzimtoti Training College in 1967.[5]
In 1971, she started her studies in Zoology and Botany at the University of Zululand, where she obtained a Bachelor's degree in Science (BSc). She subsequently began her medical studies at the University of Natal, where she became an active underground member of South African Students Organisation, and was elected as its deputy president in 1976. She was exiled in the same year and finished her studies abroad at the University of Bristol in the UK in 1978.[6]
Subsequently, she worked as a medical doctor at the Mbabane Government Hospital in Swaziland, where she met her future husband, previous ANC party president Jacob Zuma.
ANC
In 1985, Dlamini-Zuma returned to the United Kingdom to complete a diploma in tropical child health from Liverpool University's School of Tropical Medicine. After receiving her diploma, she worked for the ANC Regional Health Committee before accepting the position of director of the Health and Refugee Trust, a British non-governmental organisation. During the Convention for a Democratic South Africa (CODESA) negotiations in 1992, she was part of the Gender Advisory Committee.
She was suggested as a possible ANC candidate for the Presidency in the 2009 election and for the leadership of the party.[7][8][9]
Dlamini-Zuma was nominated for the ANC political party's deputy presidency by four provinces aligned to President Thabo Mbeki,[10] while the five provinces backing her ex-husband ANC deputy president Jacob Zuma preferred her as the national chairperson.[11] She was elected to the ANC's 80-member National Executive Committee in December 2007.[12]
The speculation of another cabinet reshuffle mounted up stating her to replace with Blade Nzimande as a Higher Education Minister which she denied later.[13][14]
South African government
Health Department
After the first all-inclusive South African elections of 1994, Dlamini-Zuma was appointed as Minister of Health in the cabinet of President Nelson Mandela, where she continued the work of previous Minister of Health Rina Venter to racially desegregate the health system and broaden state anti-tobacco measures.[15] Dlamini-Zuma introduced the Tobacco Products Amendment Bill in 1999, which made it illegal to smoke in public buildings.[16]
HIV/AIDS and Sarafina II
In August, 1995, against South African Communications Services recommendations for "cheaper and better" HIV/AIDS awareness programmes,[17] the Department of Health awarded a R14.27m contract to Mbongeni Ngema, a "good friend" of Dlamini-Zuma's, to produce a sequel to the musical, Sarafina!.[18]
Investigations into Sarafina II revealed that Dlamini-Zuma had lied to Parliament about funding for the project coming from the EU, and had ignored proper bidding procedures.[19][18]
Following criticism of the poor financial controls and commissioning procedures in a report by the Public Protector, the play was shelved.[20][21][22]
Dlamini-Zuma was also criticised for supporting Virodene, a "quack remedy" for HIV/AIDS,[23] which was in fact a toxic industrial solvent rejected by the scientific community as ineffective.[10][24][25][26]
Foreign Affairs Department
Dlamini-Zuma served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1999 to 2009, under both President Thabo Mbeki and interim President Kgalema Motlanthe,[27] during which tenure she was criticised for her "quiet diplomacy" in response to Zimbabwe's violent land invasions and anti-white racism.[28][29]
Home Affairs Department
She served in her ex-husband Jacob Zuma's 2009 presidential cabinet as Minister of Home Affairs from 10 May 2009 until 2 October 2012. She was lauded for turning around the grossly mismanaged department and achieving its first clean audit in 16 years.[10][28][30]
Presidential run
She ran for the office of President of the African National Congress in 2017. She was defeated in her campaign by Cyril Ramaphosa at the 54th National Conference of the African National Congress in December 2017, despite being heavily favoured to win.[31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38] She lost by only a few hundred votes, with 2261 to Ramaphosa's 2440.[39][40]
African Union
In January 2012, while still heading the Department of Home Affairs, Dlamini-Zuma contested the position of Chairperson of the African Union Commission. In doing so, she broke an "unwritten rule" that major African powers do not put forward candidates for AU positions.[41][42][43]
This angered many AU states, leading to a deadlock in the first election,[42][44] despite Dlamini-Zuma's backing by the fifteen states comprising the Southern African Development Community.[28][45] As a consequence of the failure to secure a two-thirds majority of the vote, incumbent Jean Ping's term was extended by six months,[46][47] until a second election on July 15 at the nineteenth session of the Assembly of the African Union elected Dlamini-Zuma to the position.[48][49] The vote was largely divided along language lines—Francophone states against Anglophone states.[28][50]
Dlamini-Zuma was unpopular and disliked among AU officials for her apparent disinterest and aloofness, and her absenteeism. Her leadership as chairperson was considered a disappointing failure,[26][51][52][53][54] although she was acknowledged for the managerial improvements she made.[44]
Controversy
“Rubbish" tweet
On 7 April 2017, Dlamini-Zuma received scorn for labeling protest marches against Jacob Zuma as "rubbish"[55][56][57] and for characterising them as examples of white privilege.[58]
Her verified Twitter account posted "This is what they are protecting ... hence some of us are not part of this rubbish. They must join us for the march for our land they stole...” and deleted the tweet shortly thereafter. Dlamini-Zuma referred to the missive as a "fake tweet" afterwards.[59][60][61]
Personal life
Nkosazana Clarice Dlamini married Jacob Zuma, with whom she has four children: Msholozi (born 1982); Gugulethu Zuma-Ncube (born 1984), who married the son of Zimbabwean politician and President of the MDC, Welshman Ncube; Nokuthula Nomaqhawe (born 1987); and their youngest daughter, Thuthukile Zuma, who was controversially appointed Chief of Staff in the Department of Telecommunications and Postal Services in 2014.[62]
Dlamini, Zuma's third wife, divorced him in June 1998.[10][63]
Tribute
In 2015, she was listed as one of BBC's 100 Women.[64]
References
- ^ "Full list – here is Ramaphosa's new cabinet". Business Tech. 29 May 2019.
- ^ "LIVE | NDZ, Ramaphosa to battle for ANC presidency as voting begins". Retrieved 17 December 2017.
- ^ African Union chooses first female leader, theguardian.com; accessed 8 August 2017.
- ^ "Morocco to rejoin African Union despite Western Sahara dispute". 30 January 2017. Retrieved 9 August 2017 – via www.bbc.com.
- ^ Adams College Archived 27 September 2013 at the Wayback Machine, Historic Schools Restoration Project; retrieved 3 August 2013
- ^ "Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma - Profile - African Union". www.au.int. Retrieved 9 August 2017.
- ^ Boyd Webb, "Is SA ready for a female president?", Cape Times (IOL), 16 November 2007.
- ^ "Dlamini-Zuma available for ANC leadership" Archived 19 August 2012 at the Wayback Machine, Mail & Guardian Online, 16 November 2007.
- ^ "Dlamini-Zuma not in ANC succession debate" Archived 19 August 2012 at the Wayback Machine, Mail & Guardian Online, 16 November 2007.
- ^ a b c d Dlamini-Zuma, the stern diplomat, Independent Online, 29 January 2012
- ^ "Dlamini-Zuma can just 'pick 'n choose'". Retrieved 8 August 2017.
- ^ Brendan Boyle, "Winnie Mandela tops ANC election list" Archived 2 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine, The Times (South Africa), 21 December 2007.
- ^ "Dlamini Zuma denies cabinet move | IOL Politics". Retrieved 12 September 2017.
- ^ Essop, Rahima. "Date for Dlamini-Zuma swearing in as MP still not finalised". Retrieved 12 September 2017.
- ^ "Health department gets tobacco award". Hst.org.za. 31 July 2000. Archived from the original on 14 April 2017. Retrieved 13 April 2017.
- ^ White, Anna (2001). "The Great South African Smokeout". Multinational Monitor. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
- ^ "Mixed plaudits for public protector's baptism". The M&G Online. 13 September 1996. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
- ^ a b van Onselen, Gareth (8 April 2016). "Dlamini-Zuma and Sarafina II: The original Nkandla". South African Monitor. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
- ^ Daley, Suzanne (8 October 1996). "South Africa Scandal Over 'Sarafina' Spotlights Corruption in the A.N.C." The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
- ^ "The Sarafina II Controversy". Healthlink.org.za. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 15 May 2011.
- ^ "Zuma's Response To Sarafina II". Doh.gov.za. Archived from the original on 11 December 2013. Retrieved 15 May 2011.
- ^ "Ngema blames Sarafina". News24. 29 May 2003. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
- ^ Campbell, John (18 July 2012). "Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma and South Africa's HIV/AIDS Past". Council on Foreign Relations. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
- ^ Myburgh, James (18 September 2007). "The Virodene affair (II)". Politics Web. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
- ^ See also Virodene for further references
- ^ a b "One Zuma to another Zuma?". The Economist. 21 January 2017. Archived from the original on 14 February 2017. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
- ^ Pillay, Verashni (4 January 2010). "All the president's women". The M&G Online. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
- ^ a b c d "Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma: SA's iron lady". News24. 16 July 2012. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
- ^ Mkokeli, Sam; Mbatha, Amogelang (16 January 2017). "Zuma May Put Ex-Wife in Cabinet to Ease S. Africa Succession". Bloomberg. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
- ^ Bauer, Nickolaus (16 July 2012). "If Dlamini-Zuma leaves, who will steer home affairs?". The M&G Online. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
- ^ "Turbulence trending". Africa Confidential. 9 January 2015. Retrieved 27 April 2017.
- ^ Butler, Anthony (10 April 2015). "Is SA's first female president on horizon?". BD Live.
- ^ Munusamy, Ranjeni (26 April 2017). "Who wants to be a president? A dummy's guide to the 2017 ANC leadership race". The Daily Maverick. Retrieved 9 August 2017.
- ^ Madia, Tshidi. "Succession, thy name is woman – Nkosazana pitches for President". BizNews.com. Retrieved 27 April 2017.
- ^ "Dlamini-Zuma touted as next president". The Citizen. Retrieved 27 April 2017.
- ^ Cohen, Mike; Mkokeli, Sam (24 April 2017). "Zuma's survival plan: keep power in family". Tech Central. Retrieved 27 April 2017.
- ^ Tau, Steven (29 April 2017). "Zuma wants to continue controlling ANC using ex-wife – analyst". The Citizen.
- ^ du Preez, Max (2 May 2017). "Could it be Gerrie Nel vs Jacob Zuma?". News24. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
- ^ Burke, Jason (18 December 2017). "Cyril Ramaphosa chosen to lead South Africa's ruling ANC party". Retrieved 18 December 2017 – via The Guardian.
- ^ "Cyril Ramaphosa wins ANC presidential race". Retrieved 18 December 2017.
- ^ Duff, Lyndsey. "Dr Dlamini Zuma's win does not herald smooth sailing for South African foreign policy". Igd.org.za. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
- ^ a b "AU: Dlamini-Zuma vs Ping". News24. 26 May 2012. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
- ^ "South African named first woman to chair AU". Al Jazeera. 15 July 2012. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
- ^ a b Allison, Simon (23 January 2017). "Farewell, Madam Chair: Inside Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma's troubled tenure at the African Union". The Daily Maverick. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
- ^ "Dlamini-Zuma bids to become African Union chief". Sowetan LIVE. 19 January 2012. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
- ^ "Jean Ping fighting to keep top AU job". News24. 12 July 2012. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
- ^ "AU chooses Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma as leader", BBC News, July 15, 2012.
- ^ "19th African Union Summit". African Union. Archived from the original on 31 July 2012.
- ^ England, Andrew. South African wins top AU job, Financial Times; accessed 8 August 2017.
- ^ Howden, Daniel (17 July 2012). "Africa split after election win for Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma". The Independent. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
- ^ Odinkalu, Chidi Anselm (23 July 2016). "Dlamini Zuma's term can's end soon enough". IOL. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
- ^ "The scramble for the chair". Africa Confidential. 23 January 2017. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
- ^ Mqadi, Sinikiwe (15 January 2017). "Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma's simply did not do her job as AU chair - analyst". 702.co.za. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
- ^ "Africa's top bureaucrat wants to be South Africa's next president". The Economist. 19 January 2017. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
- ^ "Dlamini-Zuma says 'this rubbish' anti-Zuma march tweet was fake". Sowetan Live. 8 April 2017. Retrieved 8 August 2017.
- ^ "Dlamini-Zuma says her 'not part of this rubbish' anti-Zuma march tweet was fake". Times LIVE. 7 April 2017. Retrieved 9 April 2017.
- ^ "Did Dlamini-Zuma dismiss countrywide anti-Zuma marches as 'this rubbish'?". Times LIVE. 8 April 2017. Retrieved 9 April 2017.
- ^ "Zuma's edifice starts to wobble". Africa Confidential. 14 April 2017. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
- ^ "Dlamini-Zuma labels Save SA protests 'rubbish'". Eyewitness News. 8 April 2017. Retrieved 9 August 2017.
- ^ Evans, Jenni (7 April 2017). "Dlamini-Zuma rejects 'rubbish' march tweet as fake". News24. Retrieved 9 April 2017.
- ^ "10 things about the #SAunites marches". East Coast Radio. 8 April 2017. Retrieved 9 August 2017.
- ^ Mulligan, Gabriella (25 July 2014). "Zuma's daughter appointed chief of staff at telecoms department". Human IPO. Archived from the original on 28 July 2014. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
- ^ Molele, Charles (15 December 2007). "So who will the Zuma First Lady be?". The Times. UK. Archived from the original on 16 May 2011.
- ^ "BBC 100 Women 2015: Who is on the list?". BBC News. 17 November 2015. Retrieved 17 August 2019.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- 1949 births
- Living people
- African National Congress politicians
- Alumni of the University of Bristol
- Anti-apartheid activists
- Chairpersons of the African Union Commission
- Female foreign ministers
- Foreign ministers of South Africa
- Health ministers of South Africa
- Jacob Zuma
- Members of the National Assembly of South Africa
- Ministers of Home Affairs of South Africa
- People from KwaZulu-Natal
- South African physicians
- Women government ministers of South Africa
- University of Natal alumni
- University of Zululand alumni
- Zulu people
- 20th-century women politicians
- 21st-century women politicians
- Female interior ministers
- South African women diplomats
- Women members of the National Assembly of South Africa
- BBC 100 Women