Toward a National Strategy and Development Council: The Foreign Policy Dimension

The policy brief proposes restructuring South African governance by establishing a National Strategy and Development Council (NSDC) in the presidency. This body would transform existing cabinet clusters into directorates to ensure policy continuity and prevent ministers from making uncoordinated, sector-specific decisions. Specifically, it suggests an International Relations Trade and Security (IRTS) directorate supported by an independent, non-governmental Council on International Relations and Cooperation (CIRC) to provide expert advice and research, moving away from a 'party-state' model toward a disciplined 'developmental state'.

• South Africa needs a centralised National Strategy and Development Council (NSDC) located in the presidency to serve as a strong executive apparatus for setting overall national strategy and ensuring strategic implementation.
• The current cabinet cluster system should be replaced by directorates with multiparty advisory boards coordinated by the NSDC to eliminate bureaucratic silos and prevent ministers from pursuing autonomous, uncoordinated interpretations of foreign policy.
• To ensure institutional continuity across different presidential administrations and avoid changes based on 'political whim', the NSDC should be legislated by parliament or constitutionally entrenched.
• The International Relations Trade and Security (IRTS) cluster should be restructured as a directorate under the NSDC, complemented by a revived, independent Council on International Relations and Cooperation (CIRC) to provide non-governmental expertise.
• The proposed CIRC should operate as a public-private partnership to ensure financial independence from government and donor dependency, potentially with companion councils in Johannesburg, eThekwini (Durban), and Cape Town.
• The National Security Council (NSC) should be maintained as an adjunct body or commission to the NSDC, integrating various intelligence and security agencies to manage the international security dimension.

APA

South African Institute of International Affairs (2020). Toward a National Strategy and Development Council: The Foreign Policy Dimension. https://saiia.org.za/research/toward-a-national-strategy-and-development-council-the-foreign-policy-dimension/

Chicago

South African Institute of International Affairs. Toward a National Strategy and Development Council: The Foreign Policy Dimension. 2020. https://saiia.org.za/research/toward-a-national-strategy-and-development-council-the-foreign-policy-dimension/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=South African Institute of International Affairs |title=Toward a National Strategy and Development Council: The Foreign Policy Dimension |date=2 October 2020 |url=https://saiia.org.za/research/toward-a-national-strategy-and-development-council-the-foreign-policy-dimension/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{southafricaninstituteofinternationalaffairs2020toward, author = {{South African Institute of International Affairs}}, title = {{Toward a National Strategy and Development Council: The Foreign Policy Dimension}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2020}, month = oct, url = {https://saiia.org.za/research/toward-a-national-strategy-and-development-council-the-foreign-policy-dimension/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }