Western Cape health MEC Mireille Wenger at her offices on Wale Street in Cape Town. (Biénne Huisman/Spotlight) The Western Cape's new health MEC Mireille Wenger is no newcomer to health. She, among other things, spearheaded the parental leave policy for Western Cape parliamentarians.
On her new beat and as a mum, Wenger says child health is near her heart. Given the severe fiscal challenges facing South Africa's public health sector, it is perhaps unsurprising that on 13 June, Western Cape Premier Alan Winde selected Mireille Wenger to take over in the province's health hot seat. The newly appointed MEC of health and wellness in the Western Cape, Wenger brings to the table two years' experience as MEC of finance and economic opportunities - a demonstrated flourish for pragmatism and a head for numbers.
Appointed DA chief whip of the legislature in 2019, Wenger is no newcomer to health. She has served on the provincial parliament's health standing committee, chaired its ad-hoc Covid-19 committee from 2020 to 2022, and spearheaded the parental leave policy for Western Cape parliamentarians. READ | Meet the movie buff and scientist fighting to keep rural healthcare from falling through the cracks Focus on policy development Seated at a boardroom table on the 21st floor of the provincial legislature building in Cape Town's Wale Street, she tells Spotlight: "I joined politics because I'd like to bring change in the world.
And I suppose if you ask any politician, they'll say: 'I .