21 January – Jacob Zuma, hold ceasefire talks with Alain Mugabarabona, the leader of the Palipehutu-FNL and Jean-Bosco Ndayikengurukiye, the leader of the other faction of CNDD-FDD
24 January – The Inkwazi (the South African Air ForceBoeing Business Jet) while on a flight taking President Thabo Mbeki to Paris, France develops technical problems during its inaugural flight and had to turn back
25–26 January – Jacob Zuma facilitates meetings between Pierre Buyoya, the President of Burundi and rebels Alain Mugabarabona, Jean-Bosco Ndayikengurukiye and Pierre Nkurunziza in Pretoria
27 January – Pierre Buyoya, the President of Burundi and Pierre Nkurunziza, leader of a faction of the CNDD-FDD of sign a memorandum of understanding in Pretoria
1 April – The defence ministers of South Africa, Ethiopia and Mozambique announce in Addis Ababa that their countries will send 3,500 peacekeeping troops to Burundi within 60 days under the African Union flag
13 May – The Health Minister, Manto Tshabalala-Msimang presents her budget speech to the National Assembly outlining that free health care will be extended to people with disabilities
June
PJ Powers and Sibongile Khumalo is awarded the 2002 Reconciliation Award by the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation
3–6 August – A National AIDS Conference is held in Durban
14 August – South Africa signs for four Super Lynx helicopters for operation from the new naval corvettes
28 August – Three parachuted pallets dropped by a South African Air ForceCasa 212 during a training mission are blown off course and land into a residential suburb of Gauteng causing minor damage
September
7–17 September – The 5th World Parks Congress is held in Durban
7 October – The South African Justice Ministry officials announced that the five policemen who were accused of killing Steve Biko in 1977 would not be prosecuted because of insufficient evidence
12 November – A South African Air ForceImpala MKI jet trainer crashes next to the N4 highway between Nelspruit and Komatipoort. Both pilots, Lieutenant Paul Martin and Lieutenant Gert Duvenhage, while trying to do an emergency landing on the highway, aborted to avoid an oncoming truck and ejected but were both killed (one hitting the truck).