Quick Facts
Biography
Grace Naledi Mandisa Pandor (née Matthews, born 7 December 1953) is the South African Minister of Science and Technology, serving as of 25 May 2014, having previously held the post from 2009-2012. She was Minister of Home Affairs from 2012-2014. She was appointed to the cabinet following the 2004 South African general elections. She previously served as Minister of Education (2004–2009) in the cabinets of both Thabo Mbeki and Kgalema Motlanthe.
Early life
Pandor was born in Durban, Natal. Her grandfather was Z.K. Matthews, a respected anti-apartheid teacher and reformist, who was a member and Cape President of the African National Congress.
Personal life
Pandor is married to Sharif Joseph Pandor and has five children, Fazlur, Aisha, Suraya and Haroon. She converted to Islam after she met her husband while studying in Botswana, her in-laws gave her the Islamic name of Nadia. On her religious conversion Pandor said: "My parents said God is God. As long as you worship Him we will support you and the Islamic principles are universal. Certainly, Islam demands much more of you in terms of observance."
Politics
She was elected to parliament in 1994 and was appointed Chairperson of The National Council of Provinces by President Thabo Mbeki in 1999. She served as Minister of Education from 2004 until 2009 under Thabo Mbeki and Kgalema Motlanthe. She oversaw a complete overhaul of the Education system under her tenure and proposed reforms to the country's perceived failure of the implementation of Outcomes Based Education (OBE). She was appointed Minister of Science and Technology in May 2009 by President Jacob Zuma and served as a driving force in South Africa to host the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) in the Karoo.
On 2 October 2012 President Jacob Zuma appointed Pandor to the position of Minister of Home Affairs after her predecessor, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma resigned to take up her position as Chairman of the African Union. Following Zuma's re-election in 2014, she was replaced as Home Affairs Minister and returned to the Department of Science and Technology.
