Mandisa Maya, first woman president of the Constitutional Court

President Cyril Ramaphosa has appointed Mandisa Maya, currently Deputy President of the Supreme Court of Appeal, to the Constitutional Court, a position that has always been held by men in South Africa.

September 1, 2024 marks the start of the first woman to head the judiciary.

Judge Mandisa Maya, 60, becomes Chief Justice, the highest-ranking female magistrate who also heads the Constitutional Court.

Thoba Poyo-Dlwati, President of the South African branch of the International Association of Women Judges, sees hope in this new appointment.

“It’s recognition of the fact that women are just as capable of taking on leadership positions at the very top of one of the state’s branches of power. If you look back to 1994, there were only a handful of women judges out of 174 positions, and none of them were black. Now, out of 248 positions, 115 are women”, she declared.