Ms Siviwe Gwarube has been appointed as Minister of Basic Education from 3 July 2024.
She has been a Member of Parliament representing the Democratic Alliance (DA) since May 2019. She is currently the chief whip of the DA, with a particular focus on maximising the functioning and impact of Parliament to better serve South Africans. This is done in tandem with capacitating members of Parliament in the DA caucus to be effective legislators and public representatives.
Prior to this role, she served as the DA’s shadow Minister of Health, distinguishing herself during the National Health Insurance legislative process and the country’s battle with the Coronavirus Disease pandemic. During this period, she was also the party’s national spokesperson and deputy chief whip.
During her time in Parliament, Ms Gwarube has continuously championed greater accountability and executive oversight in Parliament. She has introduced various amendments to the rules of the South African National Assembly to strengthen its hand against corruption and better service delivery..
As a Politics, Law and Philosophy graduate from Rhodes University and the University of the Western Cape, she began her career as the spokesperson for the DA’s then parliamentary leader, Ms Lindiwe Mazibuko, before joining the Western Cape Provincial Government. She went on to occupy various spokesperson roles over the years and then that of the Head of Ministry in the provincial Department of Health.
Prior to being elected to public office in 2019, Ms Gwarube worked as the Executive Director of Communications for the DA.
Source: Democratic Alliance
