Woman to Watch: Dr. Zeti Akhtar Aziz

by Karen Arulsamy

With the authority to sign our currency, Dr. Zeti Akhtar Aziz’s position as the Governor of Bank Negara Malaysia is not to be taken lightly. 

The financial crisis of 1997-1998 demonstrated Malaysia’s need for a knowledgeable and pragmatic Central Bank chief. Dr. Zeti’s keen sense of international markets and courage to deviate from best way practices filled that requirement. While most South East Asian countries accepted loans from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to cope with the stock market collapse, Dr. Zeti chose the road less travelled by. 

She has limited the foreign exchange transactions of the ringgit and set it equal to the dollar. The IMF criticized her policies for what they considered backward. In recent years, the IMF has acknowledged that limiting foreign exchange transactions could be an effective tool. Her insight further insulated Malaysia from the devastating effects the economy could have suffered during the 2007 recession. 

Dr. Zeti’s education and early careers helped her navigate the field. She attended Assunta High School, Petaling Jaya before completing Form 6 at St. John’s Institution, Kuala Lumpur. She later obtained a Bachelor’s of Science in Economics from the University of Malaya and Phd from the University of Pennsylvania specializing in monetary and international economics. 

Dr. Zeti started as a research economist at the South East Asian Central Bank Research and Training Centre, affiliated to the IMF and World Bank. In 1985, she became the Deputy Manager of the Economics Department at Bank Negara. Before her appointment as Governor, she held various positions such as Chief Economist, Head of the Economics Department, and Assistant Governor. 

The world has recognized the achievements of our Central Bank chief. Dr. Zeti was named as one of the world’s best central bank chiefs by Global Finance magazine in 2009 along with six other candidates. The magazine praised her effective management of inflation, exchange rates, currency, and interest rates to spur economic growth in Malaysia. 

She was awarded the “Tokoh Ma’al Hijrah 1432H” in 2010 at the national Ma’al Hijrah celebration. For her work in Islamic finance, she received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Annual Business and Finance Awards in Dubai held the same year. During the selection of the new IMF chief in 2011, William Pesek, a Bloomberg columnist chose Dr. Zeti among his top five to lead the IMF. 

It is not easy being the Central Bank chief especially in a time of financial uncertainty and economic slowdown. Yet, Dr. Zeti has done the job excellently. The next Governor has big shoes to fill.

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