Deputy President Mashatile convenes his first Special Extended SANAC Plenary
-Nelson Dlamini
The Deputy President Paul Mashatile, in his capacity as Chairperson of the South African National AIDS Council (SANAC), convened his first Special Extended SANAC Plenary meeting on Friday, 17 March 2023.
The Special Extended Plenary is convened by the Deputy President and his co-chairs to discuss the country’s commemoration of World TB Day, the launch of the National Strategic Plan for 2023-2028 as well as governance matters of the Council.
An ordinary SANAC Plenary is limited to the delegated plenary members who represent the three arms of SANAC, namely, government which is made up of ministers & deputies who serve on the SANAC Inter-Ministerial Committee and chaired by the Deputy President: the SANAC Civil Society Forum and the SANAC Private Sector Forum. The Extended Special Plenary however, includes Provincial Premiers, who all chair the AIDS Councils in their respective provinces.
On appointment by President Cyril Ramaphosa, Deputy President Mashatile became the 6th Chairperson of SANAC since it was established in 2002 and re-configured in 2012 to become a multi-sectoral body comprising of government, civil society, business, labour, and development partners – all tasked with formulating and driving a collective response to HIV, TB and Sexually Transmitted Infections in South Africa.