Politician and central banker
She was elected a Member of Parliament in 1994 and became Deputy Minister of Finance in the Government of National Unity of Nelson Mandela from 1996 to 1999,serving under Trevor Manuel. [7] In 1999 she became Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank under Tito Mboweni. She held the post for five years but left due to a personality clash with Mboweni. [3] [8]
She then held the Professorship of Leadership and Gender Studies at the Gordon Institute of Business Science,before going into business,initially as chairman of Western Areas mining company and later as non-executive director of Gold Fields. In 2007 she succeeded Danie Cronjé as chair of Absa Group and Absa Bank. [3]
In July 2009,President Jacob Zuma announced that she would return to the Reserve Bank to succeed Mboweni as Governor. The appointment was welcomed by both economists and trade unionists. [9]
She stepped down at the end of her five-year term in November 2014. [10]
