President Jacob Zuma has transferred the Ministry of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation to the Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, (DPME), thus completing the reconfiguration of government which was necessitated by the changes made to the National Executive in May 2014, when he assumed office as President of the Republic to lead the fifth administration.
The Departments of Women and the DPME operate independently of the Presidency, like other government departments, and have their own budget votes and administrations. Spokesperson in the Presidency, Mr Bongani Majola, said administratively, this means that the President is the Executive Authority of the Presidency, while Minister Jeff Radebe is the Executive Authority of the Ministry and Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation and Minister Suzan Shabangu is the Executive Authority of the Department and Ministry of Women. 
He said It should however be noted that Minister Shabangu and Minister Radebe remain Ministers in the Presidency. “The only new development is that the office of Minister Radebe now reports to the department of the DPME instead of the Presidency, while Minister Shabangu’s Ministry became part of the Department of Women immediately after her appointment.
Mr Majola said the transfer of functions and staff of the Ministry began in July 2015 and has now been concluded. He said the President created a new Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation (DPME). The National PlanningCommission functions were then transferred from the Presidency to the DPME, with effect from 1 October 2014 to create the new portfolio. “The intention of the President is to institutionalise planning as well as monitoring and evaluation in government and to house these functions in one Department to ensure cohesiveness and focus.
“The Ministry of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, which is the office of Minister Jeff Radebe, had remained on the structure of the Presidency, which meant that the DPME reconfiguration had remained incomplete. The 
Department operated without a Ministry which was located in the Presidency,” he said.
The following entities which were part of the Presidency now fall under the DPME:
• The Ministry for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation
• The National Planning Commission
• The National Youth Development Agency.
The portfolio of the Minister in the Presidency for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation also includes Statistics SA (Stats SA), meaning the Minister has two departments reporting to him, the DPME and Stats SA.
