Robert Haydn Davies (born 12 May 1948) was minister of trade and industry of

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 ...

from 2009 to 2019.

Education

Davies obtained his BA Honours in economics from Rhodes University and then went on to complete an MA in international relations at the University of Southampton, and a PhD in political studies from the University of Sussex.

Political career

Due to his anti-apartheid activities Davies left South Africa and lived in

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

and

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

between 1979 and 1990. During this period he was attached to the Centre for African Studies at the

Eduardo Mondlane University The Eduardo Mondlane University ( pt, Universidade Eduardo Mondlane; UEM) is the oldest and largest university in Mozambique. The UEM is located in Maputo and has about 40,000 students enrolled. History The institution was set up as a center for ...

, Mozambique. During his time in exile Davies held lectures in Mozambique together with

Ruth First Heloise Ruth First (4 May 1925 – 17 August 1982) was a South African anti-apartheid activist and scholar. She was assassinated in Mozambique, where she was working in exile, by a parcel bomb built by South African police. Family and edu ...

.Feinstein, Andrew 2009 ''After the Party'' p.58 On his return from exile he conducted economic research for the

African National Congress The African National Congress (ANC) is a Social democracy, social-democratic political party in Republic of South Africa, South Africa. A liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid, it has governed the country since 1994, when ...

and the

Southern African Development Community The Southern African Development Community (SADC) is an inter-governmental organization headquartered in Gaborone, Botswana. Its goal is to further regional socio-economic cooperation and integration as well as political and security coopera ...

. In 1990 he became co-director of the Centre for Southern African Studies at the

University of the Western Cape The University of the Western Cape (UWC) is a public research university in Bellville, near Cape Town, South Africa. The university was established in 1959 by the South African government as a university for Coloured people only. Other un ...

Cabinet Minister

He was deputy Minister of Trade and Industry from June 2005 until May 2009 and Chairman of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Finance. Davies has been a member of Parliament since 1994 and is a member of the central committee and politburo of the

South African Communist Party The South African Communist Party (SACP) is a communist party in South Africa. It was founded in 1921 as the Communist Party of South Africa (CPSA), tactically dissolved itself in 1950 in the face of being declared illegal by the governing Na ...

(SACP). He was appointed Minister of Trade and Industry by President

Jacob Zuma Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma (; born 12 April 1942) is a South African politician who served as the fourth president of South Africa from 2009 to 2018. He is also referred to by his initials JZ and clan name Msholozi, and was a former anti-aparth ...

in May 2009 and re-appointed to the position on 25 May 2014. During his first term from 2009 to 2014, he oversaw the development and implementation of annual three-year rolling Industrial Policy Action Plans as well as steering South Africa's participation in important trade relations, including the Tripartite SADC-COMESA-EAC Free Trade Area, BRICS, Economic Partnership Agreement with EU, the US Africa Growth and Opportunity Act, and World Trade Organisation Bali package.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Davies, Rob 1948 births Living people South African people of Welsh descent Members of the National Assembly of South Africa Government ministers of South Africa African National Congress politicians South African Communist Party politicians Alumni of the University of Southampton Alumni of the University of Sussex White South African anti-apartheid activists