ANC elective conference resumes, Godongwana speaks

South Africa’s governing party prepared to resume its elective conference on Saturday several hours later than scheduled after registration glitches that delayed proceedings on the opening day persisted.

Several closed sessions are planned, during which officials will present reports on the state of the party and its finances, and seek additional nominations for leadership posts from the conference floor. Voting for the party’s top leaders is also scheduled to take place, though the results are unlikely to be announced on Saturday night as expected.

President Cyril Ramaphosa, who is running for a second term as ANC leader, delivered the opening address to the five-day gathering on Friday. He acknowledged the myriad challenges the country is facing, including rampant unemployment, low levels of economic growth, continuing corruption and frequent power outages.

Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana told business leaders attending a breakfast on the sidelines of the conference that ANC policy isn’t determined by the party’s leaders and won’t necessarily shift if power does change hands.

He also said he’d be prepared to continue working with Ramaphosa or with his main challenger, former Health Minister Zweli Mkhize.

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