Present Military: South African National Defence Force
The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) is the name of the present-day armed forces of South Africa. The military as it exists today was created in 1994, following South Africa's first post-apartheid national elections and the adoption of a new constitution. It replaced the South African Defence Force (SADF), and included personnel and equipment from the SADF and the former Homelands forces(Transkei, Venda, Bophuthatswana, and Ciskei), as well as personnel from the former guerrilla forces of some of the political parties involved in South Africa, such as the African National Congress's Umkhonto we Sizwe, the Pan Africanist Congress's APLA and the Self-Protection Units of the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP).
As of 2004, the integration process was considered complete, with the integrated personnel having been incorporated into a slightly modified structure very similar to that of the SADF, with the latter's structure and equipment for the most part being retained.
The commander of the SANDF is appointed by the President from one of the armed services. The current commander is General Solly Shoke. He in turn is accountable to the Minister of Defence, currently Nosiviwe Noluthando Mapisa-Nqakula.
Recent peacekeeping actions on the behalf of the South African military include the South African intervention in Lesotho in order to restore the democratically-elected government after a coup, as well as extensive contributions to the United Nations peacekeeping operations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Burundi. An operation to Sudan has recently begun and is scheduled to be increased to Brigade strength.
Issues that face the SANDF include a severe shortage of pilots and naval combat officers, due to the replacement of white officers from the former SADF with appointments from the old liberation forces and emigration. The loss of trained personnel and the decommissioning of much needed equipment due to funding issues, high HIV-rates amongst personnel and the fact that SANDF infantry soldiers are some of the oldest in the world, all raise questions regarding the current fighting efficiency of the SANDF. Some of these issues are being addressed with the introduction of the Military Skills Development (MDC) programme, as well as aggressive recruitment and training by the Reserve Force Regiments.
Four armed services make up the forces of the SANDF:
- South African Army
- South African Air Force
- South African Navy
- South African Military Health Service
Read more about this topic: Military History Of South Africa
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