SASCA programme s

13 Sept 2019

You are cordially invited to attend two public lectures at STIAS organised as part of the Seventh Stellenbosch Annual Seminar on Constitutionalism in Africa, (SASCA 2019), 18-20 September 2019.

Former South African Minister of Finance, Mr Trevor Manuel will make the keynote address on Wednesday 18 September from 10h00 to 11h00.

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Former Deputy Minister of Finance, Mr Mcebisi Jonas, will lead a panel discussion that will focus on State capture: The private sector, the constitution and constitutionalism which will take place on Friday, 20 September from 11h00 to 13h00.

The overall theme for this year’s SASCA seminar is Constitutionalism and the economy in Africa. The participants will explore the role the constitution plays in dealing with the critical economic challenges of our time.  After nearly three decades of the new wave of constitutional democracy in Africa, there has been some measurable economic growth. However, overall poverty is still rampant and inequality increasing. This raises a number of questions with regard to the nature of the economy, the nature of the state, the relationship between them, as well as the global economic order within which they have to operate.

We look forward to welcoming you to these events. Please RSVP by 12h00 on Monday, 16 September indicating which of the public sessions you would like to attend.

For more information, contact Ms Nel-Mari Loock at 021 808 2652 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or visit www.stias.ac.za/events.

Trevor Manuel

Trevor Manuel served in the South African government as Minister of Finance from 1996 to 2009, during the presidencies of Nelson Mandela, Thabo Mbeki, Kgalema Motlanthe, and subsequently as Minister in the Presidency under Jacob Zuma. During his two decades as a Cabinet Minister, Manuel also served as a Member of Parliament, representing the African National Congress.
His career highlights include major social and economic developments within the South African economy. As Minister of Trade and Industry, he led the process of reintegrating South Africa into the global economy after decades of sanctions and disinvestment. He introduced extensive support measures for small, medium and micro-enterprises to boost local economic development and grow business enterprise.
As Chairperson of the National Planning Commission, he oversaw the drafting of the first National Development Plan.

Mr Manual has held leadership positions within a several international bodies, including the United Nations Commission for Trade and Development, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the G20, the African Development Bank and the Southern African Development Community.  He holds eight honorary doctorates from South African tertiary institutions in a range of disciplines including Commerce, Law and Technology as well as a Doctor of Laws from McMaster University, Canada. He is currently Honorary Professor in the School of Development Policy & Practice at the University of Cape Town where he is also a Senior Political Fellow, and Professor Extraordinaire at the University of Johannesburg.

Mcebisi Jonas

Mcebisi Jonas served as Deputy Finance Minister in the South African government from 2014 to 2016. He has also been a Member of the Executive Council for Economic Development and Environmental Affairs in the Eastern Cape Province and was a Member of the National Assembly of South Africa from 2014 to 2017.

Jonas was born in Uitenhage in the Eastern Cape. He has been politically active since the age of 14. He graduated from Vista University with a Bachelor of Arts in History & Sociology, and a Higher Diploma in Education from Rhodes University. After returning to South Africa from exile in the 1990s, he served in the Eastern Cape government before being appointed to the National Treasury.

His book After Dawn: Hope After State Capture, published by Pan Macmillan South Africa, analyses the crisis at the heart of our current system, which places politics at the centre of policy making and implementation at the expense of growth.