Speaker of the National Assembly, Ms Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula,
Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces, Mr Amos Masondo,
Deputy President David Mabuza,
The Executive Mayor of the City of Cape Town, Mr Geordin Hill-Lewis,
Former President Thabo Mbeki,
Former Deputy President Baleka Mbete,
President of the Pan African Parliament, The Right Honourable Chief Fortune Charumbira,
Chief Justice Raymond Zondo and Members of the Judiciary,
Heads of Institutions Supporting Democracy,
Deputy President of the governing party, Mr Paul Mashatile and leaders of all parties,
Members of Parliament,
Fellow South Africans,

It is a great honour to stand before you this evening to present the State of the Nation. For we are a nation defined not by the oceans and rivers that form the boundaries of our land.

We are not defined by the minerals under our earth or the spectacular landscape above it. We are not even defined by the languages we speak or the songs we sing or the work we do.

We are, at our most essential, a nation defined by hope and resilience.