New South African ministers sworn in after major cabinet reshuffle

The new South African ministers appointed by President Jacob Zuma in a major cabinet reshuffle on Sunday were sworn in on Monday.

Six of the seven new ministers were sworn in at a ceremony in Pretoria, the administrative capital of South Africa. The another one will be sworn in at a later date.

Zuma said on Sunday that the reshuffle was aimed at strengthening the ministries and improving public services. The reshuffle included those responsible for labor and communications. The announcement of the reshuffle was made at a news conference on Sunday in Pretoria. Announcing the reshuffle, Zuma said "We have spent 17 months in government since the inauguration of the president of the Republic and the appointment of the National Executive."

"We have completed the process of the reconfiguration of the government, and that of putting in place systems that will help us change the way the government works in order to improve service delivery," Zuma said.

"Given the fact that we still face serious challenges of unemployment, poverty and inequality in the country, the government has to work at a faster pace to change the lives of the poor."

"Our people need to see a visible improvement in the delivery of water, electricity, health care, education, social security, civic service, safety and security and a host of other basic needs, " the president noted.

Zuma stressed that South Africa needs national executive and public service that knows where the people live, who fully understand the needs of the people and what are to be achieved.

"We have taken a long and hard look at some of the departments with a view to strengthening some ministries. We have noted that a few of them require the addition of deputy ministers to assist ministers in carrying out their responsibilities," Zuma added.

Source: Xinhua