Gwede Mantashe, the former general secretary of the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), is tipped to join the Development Bank of South Africa (DBSA) as the bank’s second-most senior executive.
Union and government sources confirmed that Mantashe, who served as a unionist for more than 30 years, eight as NUM’s general secretary, was heading to the state-owned bank as executive manager for special projects.
His appointment is expected to be made public next month. DBSA chairperson Jay Naidoo refused to comment, saying nothing had been finalised. But Minister of Finance and DBSA governor Trevor Manuel is understood to have recommended Mantashe for the post.
DBSA’s mandate is to accelerate development in the region by funding infrastructure. The bank is also critical to the government’s Project Consolidate, which aims to bolster local government service delivery.
As executive manager, Mantashe would focus on the bank’s 2014 strategic plan, which places heavy emphasis on addressing service backlogs and helping municipalities with capacity constraints.