Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri

Who was Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri?

Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri was a South African politician. She was the country's Minister of Communications from 1999 until her death.

Matsepe-Casaburri was born in Kroonstad in the then Orange Free State province and completed her school career in the Natal Province. She then went on to obtain her Bachelor of Arts degree from Fort Hare University before accepting a teaching position in Natal.

Shortly afterwards Matsepe-Casaburri went into exile; she spent time in Swaziland, Zambia, the United States of America and Namibia before returning home in 1990. While in the United States she obtained her Ph.D. in Sociology from Rutgers University.

In 1993 Matsepe-Casaburri was appointed as chairperson of the South African Broadcasting Corporation. She was the first woman and first Black person to hold this position. In 1997 she resigned from this job in order to succeed Mosiuoa Lekota as Premier of the Free State Province. She was also the first woman to hold the position of a premier in South Africa.

Matsepe-Casaburri was appointed as Minister of Communications in June 1999.

She also served briefly as South African acting President in 2005 and in 2008 between resignation of Thabo Mbeki and taking of office by Kgalema Motlanthe.