Zweli Mkhize

Zweli Mkhize
25th Minister of Health of South Africa
In office
30 May 2019 – 5 August 2021
PresidentCyril Ramaphosa
DeputyJoe Phaahla
Preceded byAaron Motsoaledi
Succeeded byJoe Phaahla
Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs
In office
27 February 2018 – 29 May 2019
PresidentCyril Ramaphosa
Preceded byDes van Rooyen
Succeeded byNkosazana Dlamini-Zuma
Treasurer General of the African National Congress
In office
18 December 2012 – 18 December 2017
Preceded byMathews Phosa
Succeeded byPaul Mashatile
5th Premier of KwaZulu-Natal
In office
6 May 2009 – 1 September 2013
MonarchGoodwill Zwelithini
Preceded byS'bu Ndebele
Succeeded bySenzo Mchunu
Chancellor of the University of KwaZulu-Natal
In office
18 May 2009 – August 2017
Preceded byFrene Ginwala
Succeeded byMogoeng Mogoeng
Personal details
Born
Zwelini Lawrence Mkhize

(1956-02-02) 2 February 1956 (age 68)
Willowfontein, Pietermaritzburg, Natal
Union of South Africa
Political partyAfrican National Congress
SpouseMay Mashego
Children
  • Naledi
  • Nokulinda
  • Dedani


Alma materUniversity of Natal
(MBChB)
Occupation
  • Doctor
  • politician
  • anti-apartheid activist

Zwelini Lawrence Mkhize (born 2 February 1956) is a South African medical doctor and politician who served as the Minister of Health from May 2019 until his resignation on 5 August 2021. He previously served as the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs from 2018 to 2019. Before that, he was the fifth Premier of KwaZulu-Natal from 2009 to 2013.

A former anti-apartheid activist in Umkhonto we Sizwe, Mkhize was formerly a provincial politician in his home province of KwaZulu-Natal, with particular influence in the KwaZulu-Natal midlands. He was a Member of the Executive Council in the provincial government between 1994 and 2004 and was elected provincial chairperson of the African National Congress (ANC) in 2008. He rose to national prominence in 2012 when he was elected national Treasurer-General of the ANC at the party's 53rd National Conference. He also campaigned unsuccessfully for the ANC presidency ahead of the 55th National Conference in 2022.

As Minister of Health under President Cyril Ramaphosa, Mkhize played a central role in South Africa's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, he resigned in 2021 amid allegations that he and his family had benefitted improperly from a state contract awarded by the Department of Health to a communications company called Digital Vibes.