The following lists events that happened during 2006 in South Africa.

Incumbents

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Thabo Mbeki Thabo Mvuyelwa Mbeki KStJ (; born 18 June 1942) is a South African politician who was the second president of South Africa from 14 June 1999 to 24 September 2008, when he resigned at the request of his party, the African National Congress (ANC ...

.Archontology.org: A Guide for Study of Historical Offices: South Africa: Heads of State: 1994-2017
(Accessed on 5 June 2017) * Deputy President:

Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka (; born 3 November 1955), South African Government Information. is a South African politician and former United Nations official, who served as the Executive Director of UN Women with the rank of Under-Secretary-General ...

. * Chief Justice: Pius Langa.

Cabinet

The Cabinet, together with the

and the Deputy President, forms part of the Executive.

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the rep ...

Provincial Premiers

* Eastern Cape Province: Nosimo Balindlela * Free State Province:

Beatrice Marshoff Frances Beatrice Marshoff (born 17 September 1957) was Premier of the Free State from 2004 to 2009. She succeeded Winkie Direko to the position on 22 April 2004, and was replaced by Ace Magashule on 6 May 2009. Marshoff is also a registered nu ...

Gauteng Gauteng ( ) is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. The name in Sotho-Tswana languages means 'place of gold'. Situated on the Highveld, Gauteng is the smallest province by land area in South Africa. Although Gauteng accounts for only ...

Province:

Mbhazima Shilowa Mbhazima Samuel (Sam) Shilowa, correct Tsonga spelling "Xilowa" (born 30 April 1958) is a South African politician. A former Premier of Gauteng province while a member of the African National Congress, Shilowa left the party to help form the o ...

* KwaZulu-Natal Province:

S'bu Ndebele Sibusiso Joel "S'bu" Ndebele (born 17 October 1948) is the former Minister of Correctional Services serving from 2012 to 2014. He has been on the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the African National Congress (ANC) since 1997, and was the P ...

Limpopo Limpopo is the northernmost province of South Africa. It is named after the Limpopo River, which forms the province's western and northern borders. The capital and largest city in the province is Polokwane, while the provincial legislature is ...

Province:

Sello Moloto Sello Moloto (born August 27, 1964 in Claremont Village, Transvaal) is the former premier of Limpopo.Gabara, Nthambeleni. "Limpopo's Newly Elected Premier Announces His Exco." Bua News. 6 May 2009. Web. 9 Nov. 2010. . He was succeeded by Cassel ...

* Mpumalanga Province:

Thabang Makwetla Thabang Sampson Makwetla MP (, born 18 May 1957) is a South African politician affiliated with the African National Congress (ANC). He is a Member of the National Assembly of South Africa and is the current Deputy Minister of Defence and Milita ...

North West The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...

Province:

Edna Molewa Edna or EDNA may refer to: Places United States *Edna, California, a census-designated place *Edna Lake, Idaho * Edna, Iowa, an unincorporated town in Lyon County *Edna Township, Cass County, Iowa *Edna, Kansas, a city * Edna, Kentucky, an uni ...

* Northern Cape Province: Elizabeth Dipuo Peters *

Western Cape The Western Cape is a province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , and the third most populous, with an estimated 7 million inhabitants in 2020 ...

Province:

Ebrahim Rasool Ebrahim Rasool (born 15 July 1962) is a South African politician and diplomat who served as the South African Ambassador to the United States from 2010 to 2015, as a Member of the National Assembly from 2009 to 2010, and as the 5th Premier of th ...

Events

;January * 10 – Three miners are killed and four others are injured when a magnitude 2.4 earthquake traps twelve miners underground at the TauTona gold mine near

Carletonville Carletonville is a town in Gauteng and the seat of the Merafong City Local Municipality in the West Rand District Municipality in Gauteng, South Africa, just north of the richest gold-mining area in the world. At 3,749 m, Western Deep Levels h ...

. * 26–28 – A large fire breaks out on the slopes of

Table Mountain Table Mountain ( naq, Huriǂoaxa, lit= sea-emerging; af, Tafelberg) is a flat-topped mountain forming a prominent landmark overlooking the city of Cape Town in South Africa. It is a significant tourist attraction, with many visitors using the ...

, taking one life. ;February * 18–23 – The Koeberg

nuclear power station A nuclear power plant (NPP) is a thermal power station in which the heat source is a nuclear reactor. As is typical of thermal power stations, heat is used to generate steam that drives a steam turbine connected to a generator that produces ele ...

automatically disconnects from the national power grid after when a loose bolt damages a rotor, leaving large parts of the

without electricity supply. Load shedding in the form of erratic

rolling blackout A rolling blackout, also referred to as rota or rotational load shedding, rota disconnection, feeder rotation, or a rotating outage, is an intentionally engineered electrical power shutdown in which electricity delivery is stopped for non-overla ...

s persist during the week, causing around R500 billion in losses to industry, according to some estimates. ;March * 1 – Local government elections are held. * 5 –

Tsotsi ''Tsotsi'' is a 2005 crime drama film written and directed by Gavin Hood and produced by Peter Fudakowski. It is an adaptation of the novel ''Tsotsi'' by Athol Fugard and is a South African/UK co-production. Set in the Alexandra slum in Johan ...

wins the 2005 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film at the

78th Academy Awards The 78th Academy Awards presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), took place on March 5, 2006, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time Zone, PST ...

. * 8 –

David Goldblatt David Goldblatt HonFRPS (29 November 1930 – 25 June 2018) was a South African photographer noted for his portrayal of South Africa during the period of apartheid.Weinberg, Paul.David Goldblatt: Photographer Who Found the Human in an Inhuman ...

is awarded the Hasselblad Foundation International Award in Photography. * 13 – The

South African Transport and Allied Workers Union The South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (SATAWU) is a trade union in South Africa. History In the late 1990s, the South African Railways and Harbours Union (SARHWU) and Transport and General Workers' Union (TGWU) were both affiliat ...

(Satawu) starts a week-long national strike over the restructuring of

Transnet Transnet SOC Ltd is a large South African rail, port and pipeline company, headquartered in the Carlton Centre in Johannesburg. It was formed as a limited company on 1 April 1990. A majority of the company's stock is owned by the Departmen ...

. * 14 –

Kofi Annan Kofi Atta Annan (; 8 April 193818 August 2018) was a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh secretary-general of the United Nations from 1997 to 2006. Annan and the UN were the co-recipients of the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize. He was the founde ...

, United Nations secretary-general, addresses parliament in

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

urging African leaders to improve conditions in Africa. * 14–15 – Members of the South African Students' Congress (Sasco) and

African National Congress Youth League The African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) is the youth wing of the African National Congress (ANC). As set out in its constitution, the ANC Youth League is led by a National Executive Committee (NEC) and a National Working Committee (NW ...

stage violent protests at the

North-West University af , Noordwes-Universiteit , image = https://www.nwu.ac.za/sites/www.nwu.ac.za/files/NWU-Logo-SW.png , motto = ''Dit Begin Alles Hier (Afrikaans)'' ''Gotlhe Go Simolola Fano (Setswana)'' , mottoeng ...

's Mafikeng campus over the exclusion of some students because of unpaid fees. * 23 – Eight miners are trapped underground when a fire breaks out at the Buffelsfontein mine in Stilfontein. * 23–24 – About 150,000 security guards go on a two-day nationwide strike, but continues into April and May. * 25 – R69,000,000 (US$11.39m) is stolen in a cash heist from a South African Airways aircraft at

Johannesburg International Airport O. R. Tambo International Airport is an international airport situated in Kempton Park, Gauteng, South Africa. It serves as the primary airport for domestic and international travel to/from South Africa and since 2020, it is Africa's second ...

. * 27 – 5,000 Telkom workers stage a protest march against Telkoms's profit-sharing scheme in

Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends eastward into the foot ...

. * 30 – Six South Africans die when the al-Dana, a motorised

dhow Dhow ( ar, داو, translit=dāwa; mr, script=Latn, dāw) is the generic name of a number of traditional sailing vessels with one or more masts with settee or sometimes lateen sails, used in the Red Sea and Indian Ocean region. Typically spo ...

, sinks off

Manama Manama ( ar, المنامة ', Bahrani pronunciation: ) is the capital and largest city of Bahrain, with an approximate population of 200,000 people as of 2020. Long an important trading center in the Persian Gulf, Manama is home to a very di ...

, Bahrain. ;April * 3 – Herman van Rooyen and Rudi Gouws, two Boeremag treason trial accused, escape from the

High Court. * 3 – The ''Alexandros T'', a Greek bulk carrier, sinks about east of Port Elizabeth. * 6 – A giant rotor to replace the damaged rotor at

Koeberg nuclear power station Koeberg nuclear power station is a nuclear power station in South Africa. It is currently the only one on the entire African continent. It is located 30 km north of Cape Town, near Melkbosstrand on the west coast of South Africa. Koeberg ...

arrives in

on board the South African Navy's replenishment ship

SAS Drakensberg (A301) SAS ''Drakensberg'' (A301) is a fleet replenishment ship (AOR) of the South African Navy (SAN), with the primary role of assisting and supporting the SAN's combat vessels at sea. Built by the (now defunct) Sandock Austral shipyard in Durban, i ...

. * 24 – The first of four

South African Air Force "Through hardships to the stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , equipment ...

Super Lynx 300 helicopters flies at

AgustaWestland AgustaWestland was an Anglo-Italian helicopter design and manufacturing company, which was a wholly owned subsidiary of Finmeccanica (now known as Leonardo). It was formed in July 2000 as an Anglo-Italian multinational company, when Finmeccani ...

Yeovil Yeovil ( ) is a town and civil parish in the district of South Somerset, England. The population of Yeovil at the last census (2011) was 45,784. More recent estimates show a population of 48,564. It is close to Somerset's southern border with ...

factory in England. ;May * 8 – Jacob Zuma, former

Deputy President of South Africa The deputy president of South Africa is the deputy to the head of state and head of government of the Republic of South Africa and is a member of the National Assembly and the Cabinet. The deputy president is constitutionally required to "assis ...

, is acquitted of rape charges. ;June * 1 – The 16th World Economic Forum on Africa is convened in Cape Town. ;July * 16 – The first

South African Air Force "Through hardships to the stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , equipment ...

twin-seat SAAB JAS 39D Gripen arrives in South Africa. ;September * 5 –

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...

President of the Russian Federation The president of the Russian Federation ( rus, Президент Российской Федерации, Prezident Rossiyskoy Federatsii) is the head of state of the Russian Federation. The president leads the executive branch of the federal ...

, arrives in

and meets with

, President of South Africa. * 20 – The corruption trial of Jacob Zuma, former

, is

struck off The General Medical Council (GMC) is a public body that maintains the official register of medical practitioners within the United Kingdom. Its chief responsibility is to "protect, promote and maintain the health and safety of the public" by c ...

the roll at the Pietermaritzburg High Court. * 22 – A Sasol Tigers

Aero L-29 Delfín The Aero L-29 Delfín ( en, Dolphin, NATO reporting name: Maya) is a military jet trainer developed and manufactured by Czechoslovakian aviation manufacturer Aero Vodochody. It is the country's first locally designed and constructed jet airc ...

crashes into

Table Bay Table Bay (Afrikaans: ''Tafelbaai'') is a natural bay on the Atlantic Ocean overlooked by Cape Town (founded 1652 by Van Riebeeck) and is at the northern end of the Cape Peninsula, which stretches south to the Cape of Good Hope. It was named b ...

off

Milnerton Milnerton is a seaside suburb on Table Bay and is located north of central Cape Town in South Africa. It is located 11 kilometres to the north of the city's centre. Suburbs Suburbs/ neighbourhoods of the greater Milnerton area include: * Bot ...

while on a validation flight for the

Africa Aerospace and Defence The African Aerospace and Defence Expo (AAD) is an aerospace and defence exhibition held every two years at AFB Waterkloof, in Centurion, Gauteng, South Africa. The exhibition combines a trade exhibition and an air show. The AAD began in 1975 wh ...

air show, killing the pilot Martin van Straten. * 30–3 October – Manmohan Singh,

Prime Minister of India The prime minister of India (IAST: ) is the head of government of the Republic of India. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and their chosen Council of Ministers, despite the president of India being the nominal head of the ...

, arrives in

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

on a four-day state visit. ;October * 7 – The Marriage Alliance protests in

against

same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same Legal sex and gender, sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being ...

. * 12 –

Herschelle Gibbs Herschelle Herman Gibbs (born 23 February 1974) is a South African cricket coach and former cricketer, who played all formats of the game for fourteen years. A right-handed batsman, mostly opened the batting, Gibbs became the first player to hi ...

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

er, is questioned by the New Delhi police in

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

, India in connection with his alleged role in a 2000 cricket match-fixing scandal. * 16 – South Africa is selected for the first time as a non-permanent member of the

United Nations Security Council The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the Organs of the United Nations, six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international security, international peace and security, recommending the admi ...

for the 2007–2008 period. ;November * 1 –

Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist who served as the President of South Africa, first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1 ...

is awarded the

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...

Ambassador of Conscience Award. * 14 – The

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the rep ...

passes the Same-sex marriage bill.

Births

22 September - Lihle Mabutho 5 October- Divan De Lang

Deaths

* 18 January –

Anton Rupert Anthony Edward Rupert (4 October 1916 – 18 January 2006) was a South African businessman, philanthropist, and conservationist. He was born and raised in the small town of Graaff-Reinet in the Eastern Cape. He studied in Pretoria and ultimat ...

, billionaire businessman and philanthropist. (b. 1916) * 27 February –

Tsakani Mhinga Tsakani "TK" Mhinga (23 November 1978 – 27 February 2006) was a multiple SAMA award winning South African R&B singer, arranger and songwriter. In her lifetime she unquestionably occupied South Africa's R&B throne and was one of the country's ...

(known as TK), singer and songwriter. (b. 1978) * 16 April –

Brett Goldin Brett Goldin (21 October 1977 – 16 April 2006) was a South African actor and part of the Crazy Monkey comedy troupe. Goldin was murdered in Cape Town in 2006 alongside friend Richard Bloom, a fashion designer who was a label manager for the M ...

, actor (b. 1977) * 19 April –

Ellen Kuzwayo Nnoseng Ellen Kate Kuzwayo (29 June 1914 – 19 April 2006) was a women's rights activist and politician in South Africa, and was a teacher from 1938 to 1952. She was president of the African National Congress Youth League in the 1960s. In 19 ...

, political activist (b. 1914) * 7 May –

Stella Sigcau Princess Stella Sigcau (4 or 14 January 1937 in Lusikisiki – 7 May 2006 in Durban) was a Minister in the South African Government. Sigcau was also the first female Prime Minister of the bantustan of Transkei before being deposed in a milit ...

, politician, 1st female Prime Minister of the

Transkei Transkei (, meaning ''the area beyond he riverKei''), officially the Republic of Transkei ( xh, iRiphabliki yeTranskei), was an unrecognised state in the southeastern region of South Africa from 1976 to 1994. It was, along with Ciskei, a Ban ...

(b. 1937) * 8 May –

Patrick Ntsoelengoe Patrick Pule "Ace" Ntsoelengoe OIS (26 February 1952 – 8 May 2006) was a South African soccer player who is widely considered as one of the greatest the country has ever produced. Early life Ntsoelengoe was born to Daniel Ndimande and Marg ...

, football player (b. 1952) * 21 July –

Barry Streek Barry Streek (30 August 1948 – 21 July 2006) was a South African political journalist and anti-apartheid activist. Early life and education Barry Streek was educated at Michaelhouse in Kwazulu-Natal after which he completed his national serv ...

, journalist, political activist, author (b. 1948) * 23 October –

Lebo Mathosa Lebogang Precious Mathosa (17 July 1977 – 23 October 2006) was a South African kwaito singer. Mathosa started her career as a founding member of the popular South African band Boom Shaka in 1994 at the age of 17, after she caught the eye of mu ...

, singer & dancer (b. 1977) * 31 October – P.W. Botha, former Prime Minister and State President. (b. 1916) * 12 November –

Jabu Khanyile Jabu Khanyile (28 February 1957 – 12 November 2006)Lusk, John (2006), ''The Independent'', 16 November 2006 was a South African people, South African musician and lead vocalist from the band Bayete. Life and career Khanyile was born in Sow ...

, musician, lead musician of music group Bayete (b. 1957)

Railways

Locomotives

* April – Transwerk completes the rebuilding of the first of five Class 39-000 Electro-Motive Diesel type GT26CU-3 locomotives for Spoornet from a Class 34-600 locomotive.Information supplied by staff at Transnet Rail Engineering,

Bloemfontein Bloemfontein, ( ; , "fountain of flowers") also known as Bloem, is one of South Africa's three capital cities and the capital of the Free State (province), Free State province. It serves as the country's judicial capital, along with legisla ...

and KoedoespoortSouth African Railways Index and Diagrams Electric and Diesel Locomotives, 610mm and 1065mm Gauges, Ref LXD 14/1/100/20, 28 January 1975, as amended

Sports

Athletics

* 12 February – George Mofokeng wins his first national title in the men's marathon, clocking 2:15:06 in Port Elizabeth.

References

{{Africa topic, 2006 in, state=collapsed

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

Years in South Africa History of South Africa

Incumbents

Cabinet

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the rep ...

Provincial Premiers

Events

Births

Deaths

Railways

Locomotives

Sports

Athletics

See also

References