Tasneem Motara


Tasneem Motara is a South African politician serving as the Gauteng MEC for Infrastructure Development and Property Management and a Member of the Gauteng Provincial Legislature since May 2019. From May 2014 to May 2019, she represented Gauteng in the National Council of Provinces and served as the chief whip of the provincial delegation. Motara is a member of the African National Congress.

Early life and education

Motara was born on 7 December 1982, to an Indian father and a coloured mother, in Benoni, Transvaal Province. After finishing high school, Motara studied for a degree in psychology from the University of South Africa.

Political career

Motara joined the African National Congress Youth League's branch in Benoni in 2000. She served on the branch executive committees of multiple wards and branches. She currently serves on the ANC's regional executive committee in Ekurhuleni. Motara was also active in the South African Students Congress.
Following the May 2014 general election, Motara was elected to represent Gauteng in the National Council of Provinces, the upper house of the South African Parliament. She was appointed chief whip of the provincial delegation. In June 2018, the Parliamentary Monitoring Group published a report on the ages of parliamentarians. Motara was named the seventh youngest parliamentarian of both houses at the time the report was published. She was also the youngest ANC MP.
In the May 2019 general election, Motara was elected to the Gauteng Provincial Legislature and took office as an MPL on 22 May. Premier David Makhura appointed her the MEC for Infrastructure Development and Property Management. She was sworn in on 30 May.

Personal life

In January 2018, Motara announced that she was HIV positive. She tested positive for COVID-19 on 3 July 2020.