State of the Province Address – All you need to know

Following the President’s State of the Nation Address, the Premiers from all 9 provinces will deliver their State of the Province Addresses over the next two weeks.

The State of the Province Address is a localised version of the State of the Nation Address where Premiers reflect on and highlight their achievements during their tenure, with a specific focus on government’s five priority areas- education, health, the fight against crime and corruption, rural development and land reform as well as jobs. 2014 marks the country’s 20th year of democracy and freedom. This is a significant milestone and will be celebrated in the speeches. Usually, this is also an occasion for the Premiers to communicate their programmes of action, as well as priorities for the forthcoming financial year. However, the Premiers are expected to take their lead from the President and not elaborate on this as the programmes will be presented by the new governments after the elections.

While the State of the Province Address is not as grand as the official opening of Parliament , there is still pomp and ceremony to mark the occasion. In past years, many provinces have held the event away from the legislature, in places such as sport grounds and university campuses. This is done to bring the legislature closer to the public and to accommodate more people at the event.

The State of the Province Addresses will be aired on various TV channels and members of the public can expect to watch the speeches at public viewing areas across the different provinces.

2014 Diary- State of the Province Address · 18–20 February 2014 - KZN Legislature, State of the Province Address · 20 February 2014 - Limpopo Legislature, State of the Province Address · 20 February 2014 – North West Legislature, State of the Province Address · 21 February 2014 - Eastern Cape Legislature, State of the Province Address · 21 February 2014 – Western Cape Legislature, State of the Province Address · 21, February 2014 – Free State Legislature, State of the Province Address · 24 February 2014 – Gauteng Legislature, State of the Province Address · 28 February 2014 – Mpumalanga Legislature, State of the Province Address · 28 February 2014 –Northern Cape Legislature, State of the Province Address