The SANDF Navy is primarily engaged in maintaining a conventional military deterrent, participating in counter-piracy operations, fishery protection, search and rescue, and upholding maritime law enforcement for the benefit of South Africa and its international partners.
Future of the South African Navy
As the SA Navy enters the 2020s, the service faces significant challenges if it is to arrest its current decline. At the opening of the South African Maritime Security Conference on 31 May 2018 in Cape Town, Chief of the Navy Vice Admiral Hlogwane warned that:
‘the navy sits at the crossroads where its very existence is threatened… Some of the countries in the SADC are injecting financial resources to build their military capacity through acquisition programmes. Conversely, South Africa is on a path of reduced defence expenditure.”
At a speech a year later on 12 July 2026, Hlongwane, recognising the struggling economy, again reminded his audience that:
“in the absence of a clear and present military threat, the government will find it difficult to justify spending large sums of money on defence. The platforms acquired under the Strategic Defence Packages (four frigates and three submarines) are beginning to suffer from lack of funds for support and maintenance, [and] urgently require refits in order to keep them operational to the end of their 30-year design lives…while the new hydrographic survey vessel and IPVs are modern robust ships fully suited to perform their missions, they will not significantly improve the combat capability of the SAN which is required to defend our country and national interests in terms of our constitutional mandate…the naval balance of power is shifting on our continent.”
Budget
The South African defence budget has been on a downward trajectory since 1994 when expenditure was 2.56% of GDP. In 2010, that level was 1.12%, and in 2020, expenditure is expected to fall to around 0.95%, its lowest level since 1960. For 2020/21, the Defence Budget totals R52.4 billion (£2.4 billion), with the SA Navy being allocated R4.9 billion (£226 million), roughly 9%. South African defence spending however has not matched recent inflation levels, an average of 5% annually, which has pushed the Department of Defence deeper into financial difficulties and operational consequences.
As a whole, the Defence Budget for 2020/21 has been given 87% of its required funding, a shortfall of R9.4 billion (£433 million). The SA Navy for 2020/21 has been allocated only 65% of what is reportedly required, a shortfall of R2.8 billion (£130 million). As a result of the declining financial situation, the Navy has warned that it will seriously struggle to maintain its current capabilities, levels of investment, and international commitments. As a result of Covid-19, as well as ongoing problems within the South African economy, GDP is expected to fall by 5.6% in 2020/21, with significant ramifications for the country and the South African Navy.
Operational hours
In 2013/14, the SA Navy operated with an annual target of 22,000 hours at sea. By 2018/19 this number had been lowered to 12,000 hours, with a further reduction to 10,000 hours annually from 2026/20. By its own admission, the Navy requires a minimum of 12,000 hours (500 days) at sea per year to sufficiently train personnel, with an absolute minimum of 7,800 hours dedicated annually to fulfil its Force Employment obligations of border protection, maritime security, and anti-piracy operations. Despite these requirements, by 2026/20 the SA Navy is financially resourced for only 6,000 hours at sea, and only 4,320 hours allocated for Force Employment operations. Vice Admiral Hlongwane has warned:
“Should sea hours be reduced below 10 000 per year, the SA Navy will decline rapidly and…any further reduction in sea hours will impact severely on individual and team training at sea, maintaining safety at sea and the safe navigation of all SA Navy vessels.”
Skills recruitment
In addition, the SA Navy is facing an acute skills shortage which is severely frustrating vessel availability. Vice Admiral Hlongwane stated that “the Navy Engineering capability is now extremely limited, which will increasingly impact on the safety and seaworthiness of ships and submarines and their ability to deploy.” It is currently a cause for concern whether or not the SA Navy has the required skills to fully crew multiple highly sophisticated warships and submarines simultaneously.
Future acquisitions
Despite the current budgetary crisis within South African defence spending, the purchase of the three new inshore patrol vessels (IPVs), termed Project Biro and also the procurement of a new hydrographic survey vessel, Project Hotel have been approved in recent years. These acquisitions have been linked to the Government’s broader aims of development of the ocean economy – Operation Phakisa. With 90% of imports and exports dependent on the sea, South Africa’s exclusive economic zone which is reportedly rich in natural resources, and the estimated loss of nearly $23bn annually to illegal and unregulated fishing, the SA Navy has successfully argued that maritime security is crucial to the national interest and economic development.
Project Biro
Since 2013, the ambition for the SA Navy was the domestic construction of three offshore, and a minimum of six (later reduced to three) inshore patrol vessels as a replacement for the increasingly aged Warrior-class OPVs and River-class OPV/IPVs, as part of Project Biro. However, in 2018 it was confirmed that only the three MMIPVs (multi-mission inshore patrol vessel) would be constructed, with the OPVs being cancelled as a cost-saving measure. The new vessels will also be named the Warrior-class, and cost R3.6 billion.
Whilst the introduction of these three modern IPVs will immediately play a crucial role in maritime law enforcement, it has been regretted by analysts that the offshore craft option was not also financially feasible. It had been hoped that the OPVs, with their helicopter carrying abilities, would have played a much more effective role in policing South Africa’s extensive exclusive economic zone (1.5 million km), particularly in the rough seas of the Cape. It was even reported in 2011 that nine OPVs could be constructed, without any IPVs, due to the rough sea state off the coast and the practical experience gained which favoured larger vessels.
In 2021, it was announced that the aging Warrior-class OPVs would undergo phased decommissioning as the new Warrior-class IPVs come online.
First laid down in February 2026 at Damen Shipyards Cape Town (DSCT), the timeline of delivery to the SA Navy of all three vessels is March 2026, June 2026 and September 2026 respectively. Armscor, the state acquisition agency, has an option from DSCT to purchase additional inshore patrol vessels at the same price the original three were bought for.
Project Hotel
The second future acquisition programme for the SA Navy falls under Project Hotel, the replacement of the sole hydrographic survey vessel SAS Protea. The construction of this new vessel, currently being built by Durban based Sandock Austral Shipyard, will represent a major upgrade in capability for the Navy. Whilst SAS Protea was built in 1972, her replacement will be based on Vard Marine’s VARD 9 105 science vessel, specifically adapted for South African service and ‘incorporates the latest hydrographic and oceanographic sensor suite’. The ship will be an evolution from the Vard Marine designed HMS Echo and HMS Enterprise which have been in Royal Navy service since 2002.
Also as part of Project Hotel, the SA Navy will receive two next-generation survey motor boats, one sea boat, and another inshore survey motor boat to be kept ashore in reserve, as well as upgrading shore-based hydrographic infrastructure. The project has a current completion date target of August 2026, with the first of the motor boats being launched in September 2020.
Issues
As of 2020, the SA Navy’s main projects are under serious threat from years of underfunding, as well as recent budget cuts. Allocation of funding for Projects Biro (modern inshore patrol vessels) and Hotel (replacement hydrographic survey vessel), as well as the Army’s Project Hoefyster (new infantry combat vehicles), amounts to R2.8 billion (£129 million), however the required level of funding needed is expected to be R13.7 billion (£633 million), nearly a R11 billion shortfall (£508 million). It is currently unclear how these projects will be financed if they continue to proceed.
Similarly, Project Syne and Project Napoleon, the planned and urgently required midlife overhauls for the Valour class and Heroine class respectively, are both currently on hold due to lack of adequate funding. According to a 2021 Department of Defence (DoD) progress report, the full repair cost requirement of R1.470 billion is only 53.4% funded, with R786 million allocated. The SA Navy is currently finding it difficult to effectively resource the growing backlog of refits, maintenance periods, and repair projects that are needed. With each delay due to financial insufficiency and every vessel that continues to operate without adequate maintenance, the SA Navy is pulled deeper into a vicious cycle of exacerbating known issues and escalating longer-term costs, until a point of forced reduced vessel availability.
How To Submit Your Application For The SA Navy
With advanced operating forces of warships, submarines, patrol craft, and auxiliary vessels and over 7 000 troops, including a marine force, the South African Navy is one of the most proficient naval forces in the African region.
Thus joining their ranks can present you with a wide variety of career opportunities within the country’s naval force. Here are the requirements you must meet in order qualify to participate in their recruitment process.
- Compulsory Medical fitness (applicants will have to undergo the prescribed SANDF military health examination).
- Compulsory Psychometric tests with proof.
- Proof of criminal records by the Criminal Record Bureau for verification.
- Applications complying with the minimum requirements will be subjected to further screening.
Shortlisted candidates identified will then be invited to partake in a selection process.
Once you understand and have met the stipulated requirements, you can then follow the steps listed below to submit your application:
Download the South Africa Navy Application Form
Submit The Following Documents With Your Application Form:
- A valid ID card or proof of identification
- A copy of your grade 12 certificate
- Your up-to-date curriculum vitae
- A certificate of your highest academic qualification obtained so far
- Complete the form and submit to the Department of Defence, SA Navy Headquarters (Recruitment Center) Private Bag X104, Pretoria, 0001.
Additionally, it may be a good idea for you to download the SA Navy Career Brochure and the SA Navy Careers Information document for more information on the requirements of specific careers within the Navy.