Zuma puts an end to confusion on setting of economic policy

In recent months, labour federation Cosatu has been pushing for the Economic Development Minister Ebrahim Patel to play a central role in economic policy making, while criticising head of the National Planning Commission and Minister in the Presidency, Trevor Manuel, for wanting too much power over economic policy implementation. This has led to fears that economic policies in South Africa may take a shift to the left. Speaking in a radio interview on Monday, President Jacob Zuma put an end to the confusion around who is in control of economic policy, saying “Nobody is going to create a new policy; they have been created”. On the role of the Economic Development Department, Zuma said that its responsibility is to ensure that the government departments “don’t move in different directions”, adding that “We’re not saying ‘you originate policy’.” In clarifying the role of the Planning Commission, Zuma said that it “deals with the national plan… the plan for the country so that the work of different departments… in provinces, in municipalities, talks to this overarching plan.” He said the National Treasury’s role is to deal with finances and that Finance Minister Gordhan’s role was not a leader in setting economic policy. President Zuma’s comments are in line with our long-held belief that there is unlikely to be a significant shift towards more leftist-leaning economic policies even as the debates around issues such as inflation targeting and exchange rate policy are likely to continue for some time.