PRETORIA, South Africa – South Africa’s new President Jacob Zuma has moved the respected finance minister to a powerful central planning post.
In other cabinet appointments announced today, a day after he was sworn in as president, Zuma moved Pravin Gordhan from the tax department to finance minister.
Gordhan’s tax department had been praised for steadily raising income.
Trevor Manuel had served as finance minister for more than a decade, and his free-market policies had been credited with growth and applauded by foreign investors.
As head of the new National Planning Commission, Manuel will now be responsible for strategic planning and co-ordinating among government departments.
