(Bloomberg) — Tito Mboweni, the first black governor of South Africa’s central bank and later finance minister, who was praised for his efforts to curb inflation and public spending, has died. He was 65 years old.
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South Africa’s president’s office announced late Saturday that the former governor had died after a “short illness.” Mboweni’s family said in a statement that he died surrounded by loved ones in a Johannesburg hospital.
Mr Mboweni served as Minister of Labor in the cabinet appointed by President Nelson Mandela after the end of apartheid in 1994. He was appointed Governor of the Central Bank in 1999, a position he held for 10 years, and served as Minister of Finance from October 2018 to August 2021.
President Cyril Ramaphosa said: “We have lost a leader and compatriot who served our country as an activist, economic policy innovator and defender of workers’ rights.” “As governor and finance minister, he focused on fiscal discipline and economic transformation.”
Mboweni was born on March 16, 1959 in the northern South African town of Tzaneen. He went into exile during apartheid and trained as an economist.
According to the central bank, he earned a bachelor’s degree in economics and political science from the National University of Lesotho in 1985. He then earned a master’s degree in development economics from the University of East Anglia in the UK in 1987.
Mr Mboweni served as Labor Minister for four years. During that time, he oversaw the implementation of numerous new laws to protect workers’ rights.
As central bank governor, Mboweni fought to protect the central bank's independence in the face of criticism over the impact of the strong rand on South Africa’s export competitiveness.
conservative policy
Mr. Mboweni has established a reputation for being conservative on monetary policy. He passionately defended the inflation target, which was introduced the year after he took office and drew condemnation from labor unions.
The African National Congress said Mboweni helped maintain price stability in a “fragile post-apartheid economy.” The African National Congress was the political party that dominated South Africa from 1994 until it lost its parliamentary majority in elections this year. He was a member of the National Executive Committee, the ANC’s highest decision-making body.
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Among his other achievements at the central bank was rebuilding South Africa’s foreign exchange reserves from less than $10 billion to nearly $40 billion.
“He is a passionate central banker who played a key role in building the SARB into the professional, strong and purposeful organization it is today,” the central bank said on Sunday.
After working in banking, Mr. Mboweni joined the private sector as Goldman Sachs Group’s South African advisor. He also served as chairman of AngloGold Ashanti, once the world’s largest gold producer, and served on the boards of other companies. .
Mboweni was appointed finance minister during Ramaphosa’s first term, helping the president fight corruption and restore investor confidence eroded by the scandal-plagued nine-year reign of his predecessor Jacob Zuma. He promised to rebuild it.
“His contributions in this area helped guide South Africa through economic turmoil, and he was widely respected locally and internationally for that,” the ANC said. “Although his term was short, he guided the country’s economic policy during a critical transition period following the resignation of his predecessor.”
Mboweni’s family said they would release further details about his death in the coming days.
–With assistance from S’thembile Cele.
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