| This is one of a group of eight country profiles authored by an emerging expert, originally published as part of the "Comparative Study on Arms Trade Transparency" report (see full report). The assessments and opinions expressed are the views of each assessment's author. The Forum does not itself take positions. |  Abongile Nkamisa |
Introduction
South Africa occupies a distinctive position in the global arms trade. As both a constitutional democracy committed to human rights and a significant exporter of conventional arms, it has constructed a relatively sophisticated regulatory framework to govern arms transfers. Central to this framework is the commitment to transparency and accountability. However, recent developments suggest a widening gap between legal commitments and implementation. This report evaluates the state of transparency in South Africa’s arms trade through three lenses: (1) domestic legislation and institutional design; (2) international legal obligations; and (3) contemporary performance, including criticisms from Parliament and civil society.
Domestic Legislation and institutional design
The cornerstone of South Africa’s arms control regime is the National Conventional Arms Control Act 41 of 2002 (NCAC Act), which established the National Conventional Arms Control Committee (NCACC). The NCAC Act mandates a system that is ‘legitimate, effective and transparent’ and requires accountability in all arms trade decisions.[1] The NCACC is tasked with assessing permit applications for arms exports and imports; ensuring compliance with international law; preventing transfers to states engaged in repression, terrorism, or armed conflict; and reporting regularly to Parliament.[2]
Transparency is operationalised primarily through annual and quarterly reports submitted to Parliament. However, the NCAC Act places significant limitations on disclosure. Section 23 of the Act restricts publication of sensitive information, permitting only aggregate data such as destination countries, categories of arms, and total values.[3] This statutory limitation reflects a tension between transparency and national security. While designed to protect classified information, it has been criticised for enabling opacity.
The Regulation of Foreign Military Assistance Act 15 of 1998 (FMAA) complements the NCAC Act by regulating private actors. It criminalises mercenary activity and requires authorisation for any foreign military assistance provided by South African citizens or entities.[4] Although not directly focused on transparency, the FMAA Act contributes to accountability by extending regulatory oversight beyond state-sanctioned arms transfers to private military involvement.
In addition to statutory regulation, South Africa’s constitutional framework provides a strong legal foundation for transparency in governance, including in sensitive sectors like the arms trade. Section 32 of the Constitution guarantees everyone the right of access to information held by the state, as well as information held by private actors where such information is required for the exercise or protection of rights. This provision is widely regarded as central to ensuring openness, accountability, and responsiveness in a democratic society, particularly in light of South Africa’s historical legacy of secrecy under apartheid.
These constitutional guarantees are given practical effect through the Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000 (PAIA), which creates formal mechanisms through which individuals may request access to information held by public and private bodies. PAIA seeks to promote a culture of openness and accountability by enabling public scrutiny of government decision-making, including in areas such as arms transfers. At the same time, PAIA recognises that access to information is not absolute, permitting certain limitations where disclosure would undermine legitimate interests such as national security, commercial confidentiality, or disrupt effective governance.
The NCAC Act explicitly requires adherence to international agreements, integrating the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) principles into domestic decision-making.[5] South Africa is a party to the ATT, which imposes obligations to assess the risk that arms exports could facilitate human rights violations or breaches of international humanitarian law, deny exports where there is an overriding risk, and maintain transparency through reporting obligations. South Africa is also bound by United Nations Security Council arms embargoes, regional norms within the African Union, including commitments to ‘silence the guns”, and customary international humanitarian and human rights law.
Oversight and Reporting Mechanisms
The NCACC is a sui generis Cabinet Committee appointed by the president, comprising a group of Cabinet Ministers and Deputy Ministers that typically serve a five-year term. The NCACC reports to Parliament through the Joint Standing Committee on Defence.
Recent parliamentary statements have emphasised that transparency requires regular tabling of reports and meaningful scrutiny.[6] However, concerns persist regarding the frequency and quality of reporting, limited access to detailed data and delays in publishing reports. South Africa’s most recent reports from the NCACC indicate that the country remains an active and diversified exporter of conventional arms. Between January and June 2025, a total of 283 export permits for munitions valued at just under R5 billion were approved, alongside 79 permits for dual-use goods worth approximately R287 million ($17 million).[7] These exports span a wide range of equipment, including ammunition, armoured vehicles, combat aircraft, and electronic warfare systems, reflecting South Africa’s capabilities as a mid-tier arms producer.
International Legal Obligations
In terms of destination, South Africa’s arms exports are globally dispersed rather than concentrated in a single region. Europe accounted for approximately 59% of exports in the first quarter of 2025. This strong European demand aligns with broader global trends, where heightened security concerns, particularly in the context of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) region, have driven increased procurement and importation of military equipment.[8]
By the second quarter, however, there was a notable shift in regional distribution. Africa emerged as a prominent recipient, accounting for roughly 35% of South Africa’s arms exports, with a particular emphasis on armoured vehicles and dual-use technologies.[9] Europe remained a significant market, and countries such as Germany continued to feature among the major recipients.[10] Beyond this period, extensive research points to a parallel expansion of exports to regions such as the Middle East, including countries like the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, often involving armoured vehicles and munitions.[11] These exports have raised concerns about diversion and use in ongoing conflicts, particularly where South African-produced weapons have been linked to war zones, like Yemen.
Recent parliamentary engagements reveal growing dissatisfaction with the transparency of South Africa’s arms trade. Members of Parliament have raised concerns about the absence of end-user verification mechanisms, limited data on the final destination and use of exported weapons, and insufficient responsiveness by the NCACC.[12] Critics argue that without effective end-use monitoring, South Africa risks complicity in human rights violations.
Civil society organisations have been particularly critical. Reports indicate that South Africa exported arms to 69 countries between 2022 and 2025, including to states accused of war crimes or governed by military juntas.[13] The NCACC has allegedly failed to suspend permits in situations where international law would require it; transparency in reporting remains inadequate, with calls for “timely, transparent export reports.”[14] A 2024 analysis described South Africa’s approach as “hypocritical,” highlighting inconsistencies between its human rights rhetoric and export practices.[15]
Recent reporting suggests that institutional weaknesses further undermine transparency. The NCACC has faced operational challenges, including irregular meetings and administrative inefficiencies.[16] Parliamentary oversight bodies have expressed concerns that limited functionality could weaken regulation,[17] and there is increasing pressure to reform reporting requirements and strengthen oversight mechanisms.
Transparency challenges in the arms trade must also be understood within South Africa’s broader governance environment. The country continues to face systemic corruption concerns, reflected in a relatively low score on the Corruption Perceptions Index.[18] The legacy of the 1999 Arms Deal scandal continues to shape public distrust in arms procurement and oversight processes.[19] South Africa’s arms trade transparency framework is robust but practically constrained.
On paper, the legal regime aligns with international standards, embeds transparency as a core principle, and provides for parliamentary oversight. In practice, however, transparency is undermined by statutory secrecy provisions limiting disclosure, weak end-use monitoring and verification mechanisms, institutional inefficiencies within the NCACC, and inconsistent compliance with international human rights obligations. The result is a system that produces formal compliance but falls short of substantive transparency.
Ultimately, bridging the gap between legal commitments and implementation will determine whether South Africa can maintain credibility as a responsible arms exporter in the international system. To strengthen transparency, South Africa should amend the NCAC Act to expand public reporting requirements, introduce robust end-use monitoring systems, improve the timeliness and composition of NCACC reports, and enhance parliamentary and civil society oversight.
Transparency Reports
Annual Reports 2000-2021
Annual Report 2023
UNROCA Report 2025
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Abongile Nkamisa is a Research Advisor at the South African Human Rights Commission, she previously worked for the non-profit organization Open Secrets as a Lawyer. She worked on issues related to corporate and private actors’ accountability in the arms trade. She holds an LLM from University of Cape Town and is completing an LLM in Public International Law at the University of London.
Email: [email protected]
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[1] Deputy Minister Andries Nel, Presentation of 2025 First and Second Quarter Reports of the National Conventional Arms Control Committee (NCACC) (25 July 2025) https://www.gov.za/news/speeches/deputy-minister-andries-nel-presentation-2025-first-and-second-quarter-reports-ncacc.
[2] ibid.
[3] ibid.
[4] Regulation of Foreign Military Assistance Act 15 of 1998.
[5] section 15.
[6] Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Trends in International Arms Transfers, 2025 (SIPRI, March 2026).
[7] Deputy Minister Andries Nel, Presentation of 2025 First and Second Quarter Reports of the National Conventional Arms Control Committee (NCACC) (NCACC, 25 July 2025) https://www.gov.za/news/speeches/deputy-minister-andries-nel-presentation-2025-first-and-second-quarter-reports-ncacc.
[8] Open Secrets, ‘Not exactly at arm’s length: How South Africa’s weapons trade undermines its stance on Israel and Palestine’ (Africa Is a Country, 15 November 2024) https://africasacountry.com/2024/11/not-exactly-at-arms-length.
[9] Michael Marchant, ‘South Africa’s arms export regulator sleeps, as world goes to war’ (Currency, 17 March 2026) https://currencynews.co.za/south-africas-arms-export-regulator-sleeps-as-world-goes-to-war/
[10] ‘Mapping South Africa’s arms exports: trends, key markets, and regional demand’ (Export Focus Africa, 2025) https://exportfocusafrica.com/2025/03/01/mapping-south-africas-arms-exports-trends-key-markets-and-regional-demand-2/
[11] Marchant M, ‘South Africa’s Arms Export Regulator Sleeps, as World Goes to War’ (Currency News, 16 March 2026) <https://currencynews.co.za/south-africas-arms-export-regulator-sleeps-as-world-goes-to-war/> accessed 19 June 2026
[12] Dladla BN, ‘Arms Committee Fails to Explain SA’s Weapon Sales to Saudi Arabia and UAE’ (GroundUp News, 5 March 2026) <https://groundup.org.za/article/sa-arms-control-committee-delays-producing-record-of-weapons-sales-for-five-years/> accessed 19 June 2026
https://defenceweb.co.za/industry/industry-industry/practicing-what-they-preach-a-look-at-south-african-arms-control-compliance/
[13] Open Secrets, ‘Unaccountable: National Conventional Arms Control Committee’ (Open Secrets, 2020) https://www.opensecrets.org.za/unaccountable-00005/
[14] SA arms exports under scrutiny amid calls for greater oversight and transparency’ (DefenceWeb, 29 July 2025) https://defenceweb.co.za/featured/sa-arms-exports-under-scrutiny-amid-calls-for-greater-oversight-and-transparency/
[15] By, ‘Not Exactly at Arm’s Length’ (Africa is a Country, 2024) <https://africasacountry.com/2024/11/not-exactly-at-arms-length> accessed 19 June 2026
[16] ‘Remarks by Mr Phiroane Phala, Chairperson of the Joint Standing Committee on Defence, During the Peace and Security Cluster Media Briefing - Parliament of South Africa’ (19 March 2026) <https://www.parliament.gov.za/press-releases/remarks-mr-phiroane-phala-chairperson-joint-standing-committee-defence-during-peace-and-security-cluster-media-briefing> accessed 19 June 2026
[17] ibid.
[18] ‘Corruption Perceptions Index 2024’ (Transparency.org, 11 February 2025) <https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2024> accessed 19 June 2026
[19] Hennie van Vuuren, Apartheid Guns & Money: A Tale of Profit (Jonathan Ball 2017); Open Secrets, Unaccountable: National Conventional Arms Control Committee (Open Secrets, 2020) https://www.opensecrets.org.za/unaccountable-00005/ accessed 30 March 2026
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