South African President Cyril Ramaphosa inaugurated a new parliament on Thursday, nearly two months after a historic election reshaped the nation’s politics and led to the formation of an unprecedented multi-party coalition government.
Speaking at Cape Town City Hall, a temporary venue after a fire destroyed the parliament building two years ago, Ramaphosa addressed lawmakers to mark the official start of operations for the new coalition. This coalition brings together at least 10 parties to govern Africa’s most industrialized country.
Despite political differences, Ramaphosa emphasized that his government is united in tackling South Africa’s main issues: unemployment, crushing poverty and inequality, and the failure of state institutions weakened by corruption and neglect, much of which has been attributed to Ramaphosa’s party, the African National Congress (ANC).
The May 29 election was a turning point for South Africa, as voters, frustrated by these issues, delivered the worst result ever for the ANC. The party lost the majority it had held for 30 years since the end of apartheid, the system of racial segregation and white minority rule.
“Despite the achievements of 30 years of democracy, millions of South Africans remain poor, unemployed, and live in a deeply unequal society,” Ramaphosa said, acknowledging the ANC’s failures. “The circumstances of South Africa today demand that we act together.”
Ramaphosa’s speech marked the beginning of South Africa’s “seventh administration,” the seventh government formed since the end of apartheid in 1994. The speech, a call for unity across political lines, was generally met with applause from lawmakers, many of whom are now part of the governing coalition, including the Democratic Alliance, once the ANC’s most bitter political foe.
South Africa now has a new official opposition, the newly founded MK party led by former President Jacob Zuma, an ex-ANC leader who has become Ramaphosa’s fiercest critic. MK MPs were generally quiet during their first parliamentary session, as were members of the far-left Economic Freedom Fighters party, which has an opposition alliance with MK. Zuma was not present due to a criminal conviction and prison sentence for contempt of court in 2021.
Ramaphosa, a former protégé of Nelson Mandela, is beginning his second and final five-year term. The election results forced him to rely on cross-party support to be re-elected president by lawmakers last month.
His challenge will be to maintain a broad coalition with sharp political differences while addressing serious national issues. South Africa’s unemployment rate, at 32%, is the highest in the world, and it is considered the most unequal country in terms of wealth distribution. The economy has stagnated for more than a decade.
Ramaphosa stated that his coalition government, called the “government of national unity,” would prioritize growth and job creation by creating new opportunities in sectors such as mining, agriculture, small businesses, and green energy, while eliminating corruption and red tape.
His speech, aimed at uniting the country after a divisive election, offered few policy details but stressed the importance of inter-party cooperation. “The inter-party cooperation is a historic moment for our country,” Ramaphosa said. “We share a commitment to reconcile our nation.”