President Cyril Ramaphosa visits eThekwini to unveil statues and convene Presidential eThekwini Working Group, 3 Mar

President Cyril Ramaphosa will visit eThekwini, KwaZulu-Natal, on Tuesday, 03 March 2026, to unveil landmark statues honouring President Nelson Mandela and Oliver Reginaldo Tambo, and to convene the Presidential eThekwini Working Group.

First engagement: President Ramaphosa to unveil statues in honour of freedom stalwarts in eThekwini

President Cyril Ramaphosa will on Tuesday, 03 March 2026 preside over the unveiling of landmark statues of struggle icons President Nelson Mandela and former African National Congress President Oliver Reginald Tambo.

The 10-metre statues have been installed in prominent and accessible locations in eThekwini Municipality.

The statues celebrate the historic contribution made by both leaders to the country’s liberation and democracy and are directed at enhancing the city’s cultural and heritage tourism offering.

The unveiling forms part of the municipality’s commitment to promote Durban as a heritage tourism destination.

Details of the event are as follows:

1st Statue:
Date : Tuesday,03 March 2026
Time : 10h00am (media to arrive at 08h00)
Venue : North Beach, OR Tambo Parade, eThekwini

2nd Statue:
Time : 11h00 ( Media to arrive at 09h00)
Venue: Moses Mabhida Stadium, eThekwini

Address by President Ramaphosa

Time: 12h00 ( media to arrive at 10h00)
Venue: Moses Mabhida Stadium, Mixed Zone, eThekwini

Second engagement: Meeting of the Presidential eThekwini Working Group

Following the unveiling ceremony, President Cyril Ramaphosa will convene a meeting of the Presidential eThekwini Working Group (PeWG) at the Durban ICC.

The Presidential eThekwini Working Group, established in April 2024, is a collaborative initiative between The Presidency, the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality and the Durban Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) to address service delivery challenges, improve infrastructure, stabilise governance, and enhance economic growth in the municipality.

The meeting will bring together key stakeholders including business and organised labour leaders, Ministers, Premier Thami Ntuli, Members of the Executive Council (MECs), senior government officials, and the Mayor of eThekwini Municipality, Councillor Cyril Xaba.

The engagement will take stock of progress made since the establishment of the Working Group and outline the next phase of focused interventions aimed at strengthening economic growth, job creation, infrastructure development, and improved service delivery in eThekwini.

Details of the meeting are as follows:

Date: Tuesday, 03 March 2026
Time: 13h00 (media to arrive at 12h00)
Venue: Durban ICC, EThekwini

Members of the media wishing to cover the event are requested to submit their details to Gugu Mdlalose - gugu.mdlalose@durban.gov.za or 072 9444 835 and copy Patience Mtshali - Patience@presidency.gov.za  no later than  28 February 2026. No late applications will be accepted.

Media enquiries: 
Vincent Magwenya, Spokesperson to the President 
E-mail: media@presidency.gov.za

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