Gwede Mantashe is a politician and former trade unionist currently serving as Minister of Mineral and Petroleum Resources. He remains the National chairperson of the African National Congress (ANC) and is currently in his second term in office.
Gwede Mantashe’s Age
Gwede Mantashe was born on the 21st of June, 1955, in Lower Cala, South Africa. He is 69 years old and usually celebrates his birthday every 21st June.
Early Life and Education
Gwede Mantashe was born in Lower Cala, a village situated in the Transkei region of the former Cape Province. He attended Matanzima High School in Cala.
Gwede Mantashe was politically active in his youth and actively participated in the Student Christian Movement.
After the apartheid, he attended university and completed a bachelor of commerce in 1997 and an honors in 2002, both at the University of South Africa.
Gwede Mantashe holds a master’s in Industrial Sociology from the University of the Witwatersrand.
Thereafter, he obtained a Master of Business Administration from the Management College of Southern Africa, which he completed in 2021.
Career
Early Trade Union Career
Gwede Mantashe worked in the mining industry in Cape Town for 13 years. From 1975 to 1982, he was the welfare officer at Prieska Copper Mines in Cape Province.
In 1982, Gwede Mantashe was moved to Matla Colliery in the Eastern Transvaal and co-founded the Witbank branch of the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM).
He remained the chairperson of the Witbank from 1982 to 1984 and was elected regional secretary in 1985.
In 1987, Gwede Mantashe stood for election as assistant general secretary of the national NUM but was posted to Marcel Golding.
The following year, he became a professional unionist and was a national organizer for the NUM until he was promoted to regional coordinator in 1993.
In 1994, while contesting against Archie Palane, Gwede Mantashe won the assistant general secretary position, deputizing Kgalema Motlanthe.
While in office, he served part-time in the government as a local councilor in Ekurhuleni.
NUM General Secretary
In 1998, Gwede Mantashe succeeded as general secretary after Motlanthe stepped down from the secretary-general of the African National Congress (ANC).
He notably emphasized discipline and democratic centralism for increased bureaucratic management.
During the tenure of Gwede Mantashe, the NUM was the largest affiliate of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU), which was linked to the South African Communist Party (SACP).
At the 51st National Conference in 2002, he was nominated to the ANC national executive committee but wasn’t elected.
In 2006, Gwede Mantashe stepped down from the NUM leadership. Frans Baleni succeeded him.
After that, he served two years as executive manager at the Development Bank of Southern Africa and was the chairperson of the technical working group.
In 2007, after leaving NUM, Gwede Mantashe was elected as the national chairperson of the SACP. He worked with Blade Nzimande and Ncumisa Kondlo and was seen as a frontrunner for a higher position in ANC.
ANC Secretary-General
In 2007, at the 52nd national conference, Gwede Mantashe was elected as ANC secretary-general. He was attributed to Jacob Zuma and endorsed by Cosatu and the ANC Youth League.
Gwede Mantashe was responsible for managing the fallout between supporters of Mbeki and Zuma.
In 2012, he was re-elected to a second term at the 53rd national conference in Mangaung in December.
While running alongside Jacob Zuma, Gwede Mantashe beat Fikile Mbalula while receiving 3,058 votes.
He was a known supporter and defender of Jacob Zuma; at the 54th national conference in 2017, he was elected as the ANC’s national chairperson as he didn’t seek re-election for the position of secretary-general.
Minister of Mineral Resources
In 2018, Cyril Ramaphosa appointed Gwede Mantashe as Minister of Mineral Resources. At the time of his appointment, he was welcomed by the Business Leadership South Africa and Chamber of Mines.
Gwede Mantashe was one of the two ministers appointed outside the parliament.
In 2019, a ministerial merger saw Gwede nominated in Cyril Ramaphosa’s second cabinet and as the Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy.
In 2024, many changes were made, and Gwede Mantashe was limited to serving as the Minister of Mineral and Petroleum Resources.
Family
Gwede Mantashe is married to Nolwandle Mantashe, and together, they have four children.
Net Worth
Gwede Mantashe has an undisclosed net worth.