Two moves which should go some distance to allay fears in the markets and reassure investors are the most significant appointments made by President Jacob Zuma in drawing up his list of cabinet ministers.

Pravin Gordhan, the highly successful commissioner of revenue, has been named as finance minister. And his former boss and predecessor, Trevor Manuel, is given the job of heading up a national planning commission in the presidency.

The post of deputy finance minister remains with Nhlanhla Nene

The idea of the planning commission is to give Manuel even more power to control what other ministers and other spheres of government are doing than he had as finance minister, while at the same time cutting down the importance of the finance minister himself.

Indeed a new department within the economic galaxy has been formed - Economic Development, to be headed by Ebrahim Patel - which may take even more power away from the finance ministry, though Zuma himself was at pains to explain at a media conference in Pretoria and Cape Town on Sunday that it will not take anything away from the power that Manuel will wield at the NPC.

"Taking away economic planning, as you put it," Zuma said in answer to a question from I-Net Bridge, "is not limiting his power. Trevor Manuel has been given a new structure, a very powerful structure that is going to work out a national plan of government."

He said that finance ministers around the world by virtue of the task they undertake are powerful. But Trevor has enough experience to draw up and execute the national plan because his very handling of the finances has empowered him to understand the government inside out.

"Manuel understands government very well ... He is given a task to undertake. Trevor Manuel will certainly do it with flying colours," Zuma said.

The newly inaugurated President told the media that the National Plan is to be all encompassing, "so the country has a National Plan that guides government in whatever sphere".

He added: "It is not going to exclude economic matters."

But he complained that in the past economic policy had been generated in a number of different departments, with different ministers putting their own different slant on matters.

The new structures are still not entirely clearly defined all the same. The new economic development ministry will ensure that there is one place where economic policy is generated, the president said. Although a number of economic activities take place in different departments, and at times people may say slightly different things now, he said, "they must talk to the national plan and they must also talk to the economic policy that emerges from that department".

The implementation of economic policy, developed by the department will remain in the hands of the department of Trade and Industry, which is to be under new(-ish) management with the former deputy minister Rob Davies taking charge and the former minister Mandisi Mpahlwa consigned to the outer darkness.

Davies has been one the successes at the department handling complicated matters of trade agreements in a highly skilled and mainly successful way. He is also one of a number of senior members of the SA Communist Party promoted by Zuma.

Monitoring and evaluating the implementation of the policies Manuel develops - in all three spheres of government - is also to be done by a new department within the Presidency, under Collins Chabane. It will be a fine new tool for the Zuma government to ensure that governments not under ANC control - the Western Cape, Cape Town, for example - are kept on a leash.

Kgalema Motlanthe, who held the position of president after the departure of Thabo Mbeki, was named Deputy President.

Blade Nzimande, the general secretary of the Communist party is the most prominent of the SACP promotions. He is given charge of a newly formed ministry of higher education and training, half of the old education ministry. The rest of education - renamed Basic Education - is put in the hands of Angie Motshekga, former MEC for education in Gauteng.

Enver Surty, who must have upset someone powerful at some stage, is chopped from the Justice Ministry and relegated to Motshekga's deputy, in half of a department where he once also served as deputy.

His former deputy at justice, Johnny de Lange, who was given charge of a total revamp of the criminal justice system under the previous government, is also out in the cold. There has been no word so far about what will happen to his proposals. The health of the justice system is not apparently something that overly concerns the new administration.

The department itself is restored to the charge of Jeff Radebe an ardent Zuma supporter (and also a Communist), with Andries Nel as his deputy, a man who never noticeably offended anyone in the ANC hierarchy during many years as deputy chief whip.

Other departments which have been divided include Minerals and Energy, which now becomes the Department of Mining, under the outspoken Susan Shabangu, and the Department of Energy under Dipuo Peters, a former premier of the Northern Cape.

Water Affairs and Forestry has been split, as has Environmental Affairs and Tourism and Agriculture and Land Affairs. The rearrangement of these three ends up with Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries together under Tina Joemat-Peterson, with a major surprise as her deputy - Pieter Mulder who wanted to be thought of as a hard line Afrikaner and leads the Freedom Front Plus. Disappointment among his followers may add to the adherents that Helen Zille, leader of the Democratic Alliance has amassed.

Land Affairs has been expanded and renamed Rural Development and Land Reform as a measure of the government's intent to speed up the whole process of reform. Gugile Nkwinti, former Eastern Cape MEC for Agriculture is in charge.

Water Affairs is now linked to the Environment, under Buyelwa Sonjica formerly in charge of Minerals and Energy. Rejoice Mabhudafasi, her deputy minister was formerly deputy to Marthinus van Schalkwyk. He has retained control of Tourism at least.

He with Rob Davies and Barbara Hogan, inexplicably translated to take charge of Public Enterprises, are the only white people with full ministries, though there are six white deputy ministers.

They include Jeremy Cronin, deputy general secretary of the SACP, who become deputy transport minister, and Sue van der Merwe, Gert Oosthuizen, and Derek Hanekom, who all stay in the posts they occupied before.

Also staying put are Nathi Mthethwa, whose Safety and Security Ministry is now renamed as the Police Ministry, Makhenkesi Stofile at Sport and Recreation, Membathisi Mdlandlana at the Ministry of Labour, and Siyabonga Cwele at Intelligence, now renamed Ministry of State Security.

Tokyo Sexwale, back in government for the first time since he left to make his fortune as chief of Mvelaphanda Holdings, is Minister of Housing - also renamed as Human Settlements. Former minister Lindiwe Sisulu pops up at Defence - with Military Veterans also attached to her title.

Former Minister of Defence Charles Nqakula is out, but his wife Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula exchanges the corrupt and inefficient department of Home Affairs, for the equally corrupt and inefficient Department of Correctional Services. Ngconde Balfour the former minister there is also out.

Zuma's ex-wife, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma takes over at Home Affairs.

The Communications Ministry is taken over by Siphiwe Nyanda, the former general in charge of the SA National Defence Force.

I-Net Bridge