# Permanent Representative of South Africa to the United Nations

The South African Permanent Representative in New York City is the official representative of the Government in Pretoria next the Headquarters of the United Nations.

## History

* In 1945 South Africa was one of the 51 founding member of the United Nations.
* On 12 November 1974 the United Nations General Assembly suspended South Africa from participating in its work, due to international opposition to the policy of apartheid.
* In 1994 following its transition into a democracy South Africa was re-admitted to the UN.
* Since 1994 the democratically elected government has pursued a foreign policy based on the centrality of the UN in the multilateral system.

## List of representatives

| Diplomatic accreditation | Permanent Representative | Observations | President of South Africa | Secretary-General of the United Nations | Term end |
| April 25, 1945 | Philip Rudolph Botha | Trade Commissioner, New York, September 29, 1929: Commercial Secretary, New York, March 1, 1946: Envoy Extraordinary, Lisbon, October 10, 1949: Envoy Extraordinary, Brussels, August 23, 1951: Ambassador, Brussels | J. B. M. Hertzog | Gladwyn Jebb | |
| July 18, 1947 | Seymour Jacklin | | Jan Smuts | Trygve Halvdan Lie | |
| November 1, 1948 | Eric Louw | Eric Louw, representative of the South African government at the United Nations in November 1948, | Daniel François Malan | Trygve Halvdan Lie | |
| September 16, 1949 | Gerhardus Petrus Jooste [de] | 1937 Charge d Affairs in Brussels. 1941: Charge d Affairs Belgian government in London 31 March 1949: South African Ambassador to the United States. April 30, 1954: High Commissioner, London | Daniel François Malan | Trygve Halvdan Lie | December 31, 1949 |
| January 1, 1949 | Jan Ruiter Jordaan [ru] | Deputy permanent representative to the United Nations | Daniel François Malan | Trygve Halvdan Lie | May 18, 1949 |
| June 20, 1954 | Wentzel Christoffel du Plessis | October 28, 1953: High Commissioner, Ottawa August 1, 1956: South African Ambassador to the United States | Daniel François Malan | Dag Hammarskjöld | June 19, 1954 |
| September 19, 1955 | Donald Bell Sole [de] | Deputy permanent representative to the United Nations | Johannes Gerhardus Strijdom | Dag Hammarskjöld | May 18, 1949 |
| August 1, 1956 | Donald Bell Sole [de] | | Johannes Gerhardus Strijdom | Dag Hammarskjöld | July 31, 1956 |
| April 1, 1957 | Johan Samuel Frederick Botha | acting Permanent representative (* February 18, 1919, South Africa) married 1949, Teresa M Robbins, one daughter, three sons. education : University of Stellenbosch, University of South Africa. 1940-1945 served with South African Army. 1949-1954: second secretary, South African Embassy Washington DC. 1954-1957: second secretary South Afarican Embassy Ottawa. 1954-1957: permanent representative to UN. 1959-1962: assistant secretary, Department of Foreign Affairs, Pretoria. 1964-1967: minister, South African Embassy, Washington DC. 1967-1971: deputy secretary for Foreign Affairs. 1971 appointed South African Ambassador to the United States | Johannes Gerhardus Strijdom | Dag Hammarskjöld | March 30, 1957 |
| September 1, 1958 | Bernardus Gerhardus Fourie | March 26, 1982: South African Ambassador to the United States | Hendrik Verwoerd | Dag Hammarskjöld | August 31, 1958 |
| May 1, 1962 | Matthys Izak Botha | February 26, 1959: Envoy Extraordinary, Berne. July 21, 1970: Ambassador in Ottawa. January 1, 1974: Ambassador of Rome. February 1, 1977: Ambassador London. March 5, 1979: Ambassador Bhisho. | Charles Robberts Swart | U Thant | July 10, 1962 |
| October 14, 1970 | Carl Friedrich George von Hirschberg | May 1, 1975: Consul General in Tokyo | Jacob Johannes Fouché | U Thant | July 16, 1970 |
| February 15, 1974 | Pik Botha | 35/5000 March 10, 1975: South African Ambassador to the United States | Jacob Johannes Fouché | Kurt Waldheim | |
| January 1, 1976 | Jacobus Adriaan Eksteen | Till 1977 a Charge d Affairs. (*was born 31 October 1942 in Volksrust, Transvaal, Republic (then Union) of South Africa. He received the M.A. in political science, cum laude, from the University of South Africa. He entered the Civil Service in 1961, beginning with the Department of Interior, and was transferred to the Department of Justice in December of that year. | Johannes de Klerk | Kurt Waldheim | |
| November 5, 1981 | David Whitefoord Steward | (* 23. Mai 1945 in Nairobi) Son of Alexander Harvey Whitefoord Steward. educated St. John's School Leatherhead, UK 1976-1978: Counsellor SA Embassy Ottawa. | Marais Viljoen | Kurt Waldheim | January 1, 1979 |
| October 7, 1983 | Kurt Robert Samuel von Schirnding | | Marais Viljoen | Javier Pérez de Cuéllar | January 1, 1982 |
| January 1, 1987 | Albert Leslie Manley | 07|1988: Permanent Representative, Geneva (UN), | Pieter Willem Botha | Javier Pérez de Cuéllar | |
| September 11, 1991 | Vernon Rudston Whiteford Steward | Ambassador V R W Steward aa) United Nations of America (New York) [UN] bb)from 01.08.91 to 01.08.95 | Frederik Willem de Klerk | Javier Pérez de Cuéllar | |
| February 1995 | Josiah Khiphusizi Jele | (* 1 May 1930, in Alexandra, Johannesburg). | Nelson Mandela | Boutros Boutros-Ghali | |
| April 21, 1999 | Dumisani Kumalo | | Thabo Mbeki | Kofi Annan | January 1, 1998 |
| March 17, 2009 | Baso Sangqu | | Jacob Zuma | Ban Ki-moon | March 16, 2009 |
| March 13, 2013 | Jeremiah Kingsley Mamabolo | (*Born in Johannesburg on 13 August 1955) 2009: High Commissioner to Nigeria | Jacob Zuma | Ban Ki-moon | 2018 |
| July 5, 2016 | Jerry Matthews Matjila | | Jacob Zuma | Ban Ki-moon | 2018 |
| February 3, 2021 | Mathu Theda Joyini | | Cyril Ramaphosa | António Guterres | |
40°45′24″N 73°58′11″W﻿ / ﻿40.756731°N 73.969773°W﻿ / 40.756731; -73.969773