Naledi Pandor is a South African politician, educator, and academic. She worked as the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation from 2019 to 2024. She was also an ANC Member of Parliament for a long time, serving from 1994 until 2024.
Net Worth, Ethnicity & Religion
According to the reports, her current net worth is approximately R55 million ($2.9 million) from all of her income sources as of 2025(source). She is of South African black Ethnicity. She chose to follow Islam after she met her husband.
Husband, Parents & Siblings
According to the reports, she is married now. She is married to Sharif Joseph Pandor, whom she met during her studies in Botswana. They have four children together, including Aisha, Fazlur, and Haroon Pandor.
She was born to her African parents. Her father’s name is Mr Joe Matthews, and her mother’s name is Mrs Regina Thelma. She has a brother named Zolani Mathews.
Early Life & Educational Details
Her real name is Grace Naledi Mandisa Pandor. She was born on 7 December 1953 in Durban, South Africa. She is 71 years old as of 2024. She completed her schooling in Botswana and finished matric at Gaborone Secondary School.
From 1973 to 1977, she earned a continuing education certificate and then a bachelor’s degree from the University of Swaziland and the University of Botswana.
After that, she went abroad and completed a teaching diploma and a master’s degree at the University of London between 1978 and 1979.
In 1992, she earned a diploma in higher education, administration, and leadership through the Bryn Mawr Summer Programme.
She later studied at the Harvard Kennedy School and completed a leadership-in-development diploma in 1997, the same year she finished her MA in linguistics at the University of Stellenbosch.
She went on to receive her PhD in education from the University of Pretoria in 2019.
Career Details
She started her career in 1980 as a teacher at Ernest Bevin School in London. From 1986 to 1989, she was a senior English lecturer at the University of Bophuthatswana, and from 1989 to 1994, she worked as a senior fellow in the Academic Support Programme at the University of Cape Town.
She led the Western Cape National Executive Committee of the National Education Coordinating Committee from 1991 to 1993. From 1992 to 1995, she served as the deputy head of the Tertiary Education Fund of South Africa.
Later, she became the chancellor of Cape Technikon from 2002 to 2004 and also served on the governing council of the University of Fort Hare during that time.
She entered the National Assembly after the 1994 elections. She first worked as the Deputy Chairperson and, after the 1999 elections, became the Chairperson — the first woman to ever hold that position.
After the 2004 elections, she returned to the National Assembly and was appointed Minister of Education by President Thabo Mbeki, taking office on 12 May 2004. After the 2009 elections, Jacob Zuma became president.
During her time in the role, she strongly supported South Africa’s bid to host the Square Kilometre Array in the Karoo — a bid the country eventually won.
In October 2012, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma left her position as Minister of Home Affairs to become Chair of the African Union. As a result, President Zuma asked her to serve as acting Minister of Home Affairs from 2 October 2012.
After the 2014 elections, Zuma moved her back to lead the Department of Science and Technology. After the 2019 election, the Ministry of Higher Education and Training was divided into separate departments.
There were rumours that Pandor might be chosen as South Africa’s Deputy President. In the 2024 election, she lost her seat in Parliament because she was placed 86th on the ANC’s national list, while the party won only 73 seats from that list.
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