Mboweni must be remembered as 'an insightful, a robust and a decisive economic leader' - Parsons

JOHANNESBURG - Some economists have described former Finance Minister Tito Mboweni's tight control on fiscal policy as the saving grace of the country’s economy.

Mboweni headed up the National Treasury between 2018 and 2021 at a time when the fiscus needed urgent intervention to address low economic growth.

Poor revenue performance also made resource allocation even more challenging, piling pressure on Treasury officials.

The 65-year-old fashioned himself as a minister of austerity and budget cuts, one who would reduce the country's burgeoning debt after years of state capture and bailouts to struggling parastatals.

While he admitted that Mboweni's job was tough, economics professor at the North West University Business School, Raymond Parsons, said that he set himself apart from his predecessors.

"I think we must remember him as an insightful, a robust and a decisive economic leader, which over the period in which he served in three high offices was able to put a stamp on several of the post-apartheid institutions."