Zhang Ping
Zhang Ping is director of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and a member of the 17th Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Central Committee. Prior to his current position, he served as deputy secretary general of the State Council from 2006 to 2008.
Zhang was born in January 1946 in Xiaoxian County, Anhui. He graduated from the Anhui School of Banking with a concentration in credit and loans in 1966. He joined the CCP in 1979 and studied at the Anhui provincial CCP school from 1980 to 1981.
After graduation, Zhang began his career in finance, working first as an accountant at the Chaoxian branch of the People's Bank of China in Anhui. He rose through the ranks, eventually becoming the branch's general manager, before joining Chaoxian county government in 1981. Through the 1980s, Zhang held various positions in the county and provincial governments, as well as in the nearby city of Wuhu, working mainly in economics- and planning-related positions. In 1992, he was named acting mayor of Wuhu and was made full mayor the following year.
Zhang was elevated to provincial-level positions in 1995 and, thereafter, held various high-level positions in Anhui, including assistant governor (1995-96), vice governor (1996-99), and deputy secretary of the Anhui CCP (1999-present). In January 2006, Zhang was appointed secretary general of the State Council. In March 2008, he replaced Ma Kai as director of NDRC.
Zhang served as an alternate member of the 16th CCP Central Committee (2002-07) and was named a full member of the 17th Central Committee (2007-12) in October 2007.