Born in 1961 in Pietermaritzburg,the capital city of KwaZulu-Natal , Francois Rodgers was elected as the DA KZN Leader on the 27th March 2021.
He attended Cowan House Preparatory School and then went on to study at Maritzburg College, he joined the Receiver of Revenue, moving to auditing of Sales Tax and PAYE.
After having completed his studies in 1987, he moved to Kokstad, to enter the world of business, opening and operating numerous business’s and currently still has business interests in Kokstad. During this time he served on the board of the Kokstad family and Child welfare society, the school boards of Holy Cross and St. Patrick’s College, and the Kokstad Business Chamber which further played a crucial role in his purpose of community involvement.
Clear about his vision to become a public representative and fight for the plight of South Africans, has been a public representative for over 25 years. He first became a DA Councillor in Kokstad in 1996, Chairperson of ADAC, Deputy Shadow Minister for Water and Environmental Affairs at the National Assembly, DA KZN Deputy Leader, Provincial Finance Chairman, a member of the KZN Legislature, serving as spokesperson on Finance and SCOPA, Provincial Chairperson, leader and chief whip of the official opposition in the KZN Legislature.
During his tenure as a public representative he attended Wits University where he studied municipal governance and finance then Public Administration. He is currently studying towards his Master’s in Public Governance at Wits University.
Francois is married to Rita and has two daughters, Natalie and Hayley.