The Minister of Agriculture is a minister in the Cabinet of South Africa since 2024, when the corresponding department was split from the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. It holds the political executive responsibility for the Department of Agriculture, and for the Agricultural Research Council, the National Agricultural Marketing Council, Onderstepoort Biological Products, the Perishable Products Export Control Board, and Ncera Farms.[1]
| Minister of Agriculture | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Department of Agriculture | |
| Style | The Honourable |
| Appointer | Cyril Ramaphosa |
| Inaugural holder | Louis Botha |
| Formation | 30 June 2024 |
| Deputy | Rosemary Capa |
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The agriculture portfolio was created in the 2024 cabinet reorganisation after the re-election of President Cyril Ramaphosa as part of the government of national unity. The current Minister of Agriculture is John Steenhuisen.
List of agriculture ministers
editIn the past, several other ministerial posts and portfolios included, or were exclusively responsible for, agriculture. The following is a historical list of these posts' official titles and their corresponding office holders.
Minister of Agriculture, 1910-1933
edit| Name | Portrait | Term | Party | Prime Minister | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Louis Botha | 31 May 1910 | 28 June 1912 | SAP | Louis Botha (I) (II) | |||
| J.W. Sauer | 28 June 1912 | 24 July 1913 | |||||
| Louis Botha | 1913 | 1913 | |||||
| H.C. van Heerden | 1913 | 20 March 1920 | |||||
| F.S. Malan | 20 March 1920 | 8 February 1921 | SAP | Jan Smuts (I) (II) | |||
| Deneys Reitz | 8 February 1921 | 19 June 1924 | |||||
| Jan Kemp | 19 June 1924 | 17 May 1933 | NP | J.B.M. Hertzog (I) (II) | |||
Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, 1933-1948
edit| Name | Portrait | Term | Party | Prime Minister | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan Kemp | 1934 | 1935 | UP | J.B.M. Hertzog (III) (IV) | |||
| Deneys Reitz | 1935 | 18 May 1938 | |||||
| W.R. Collins | 18 May 1938 | 17 July 1943 | |||||
| Jan Smuts (takes office after Hertzog resignation) | |||||||
| J.G.N. Strauss | 17 July 1943 | 26 May 1948 | UP | Jan Smuts (III) | |||
Minister of Agriculture, 1948-1958
edit| Name | Portrait | Term | Party | Prime Minister | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S.P. le Roux | 26 May 1948 | 16 April 1958 | HNP | D.F. Malan (I) (II) | |||
Minister of Water Affairs and Agricultural Technical Services, 1958-1966
edit| Name | Portrait | Term | Party | Prime Minister | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P.K. le Roux | 16 April 1958 | 30 March 1966 | NP | Strydom (I) | |||
| Hendrik Verwoerd (takes office after Strydom's death) | |||||||
Minister of Agriculture and Water Affairs, 1966-1968
edit| Name | Portrait | Term | Party | Prime Minister | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J.J. Fouché | 30 March 1966 | 10 April 1968 | NP | Hendrik Verwoerd (II) | |||
| B.J. Vorster (takes office after Verwoerd's death) | |||||||
Minister of Agriculture, 1968-1981
edit| Name | Portrait | Term | Party | Prime Minister | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D.C.H. Uys | 10 April 1968 | 1972 | NP | B.J. Vorster (I) (II) (III) | |||
| Hendrik Schoeman | 1972 | 29 April 1981 | |||||
Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, 1981-1982
edit| Name | Portrait | Term | Party | Prime Minister | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pietie du Plessis | 29 April 1981 | 1982 | NP | P.W. Botha (I) | |||
Minister of Agriculture, 1982-1991
edit| Name | Portrait | Term | Party | President (since 1984) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J.J.G. Wentzel | 1982 | 6 September 1989 | NP | P.W. Botha (I) (II) | |||
| Jacob de Villiers | 6 September 1989 | 1991 | NP | F.W. de Klerk (I) | |||
Minister of Agriculture and Development, 1991-1994
edit| Name | Portrait | Term | Party | President | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kraai van Niekerk | 1991 | 10 May 1994 | NP | F.W. de Klerk (I) | |||
Minister of Agriculture, 1994-1996
edit| Name | Portrait | Term | Party | President | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kraai van Niekerk | 10 May 1994 | 1996 | NP | Nelson Mandela (Government of National Unity) | |||
Minister of Agriculture and Land Affairs, 1996-2009
edit| Name | Portrait | Term | Party | President | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Derek Hanekom | 1996 | 14 June 1999 | ANC | Nelson Mandela (Government of National Unity) | |||
| Thoko Didiza | 14 June 1999 | 22 May 2006 | ANC | Thabo Mbeki (I) (II) | |||
| Lulama Xingwana | 22 May 2006 | 9 May 2009 | |||||
| Kgalema Motlanthe (takes office after Mbeki resigns) | |||||||
Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, 2009-2019
edit| Name | Portrait | Term | Party | President | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tina Joemat-Peterson | 9 May 2009 | 24 May 2014 | ANC | Jacob Zuma (I) (II) | |||
| Senzeni Zokwana | 24 May 2014 | 29 May 2019 | |||||
| ANC | Cyril Ramaphosa (Feb 2018–) | ||||||
Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development, 2019-2024
edit| Name | Portrait | Term | Party | President | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thoko Didiza | 29 May 2019 | 13 June 2024 | ANC | Cyril Ramaphosa | |||
Minister of Agriculture 2024-present
edit| Name | Portrait | Term | Party | President | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Steenhuisen | 30 June 2024 | DA | Cyril Ramaphosa | ||||
References
edit- ^ "DAFF Structure" (PDF). Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. Retrieved 9 October 2009. [dead link]