Part 3/7:
The Apartheid Era and Its Legacy
From 1948 onward, the apartheid regime entrenched racial inequality through segregation laws and policies that systematically suppressed black South Africans. The introduction of acts such as the Population Registration Act and the Group Areas Act further codified these divisions, ensuring that the majority population remained economically and socially marginalized.
As apartheid slowly crumbled, driven by internal resistance and international sanctions, South Africa transitioned to a democratic governance system in 1994 when Nelson Mandela became the country’s first black president. However, despite the end of formal apartheid, the vestiges of inequality, poverty, and systemic corruption continued to plague the nation.