The advertisement also shows the government wants a range of voices on the board.

“The Reserve Bank of Australia is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive workplace,and the government is committed to ensuring that Australia’s institutions appropriately reflect the diversity of our community,” it states.

Wayne Swan was the first treasurer to open up the process of RBA board membership,creating an internal Treasury shortlist of potential appointees soon after he took office in 2007. Before that,board members were the sole purview of the treasurer.

Successful applicants will go on to the shortlist of appointees.

Appearing before two parliamentary inquiries last week,RBA governor Philip Lowe made clear that he and the board determined the setting of interest rates.

The RBA board is unusual among the world’s central banks in that non-RBA staff members of the board are not drawn from academic or monetary policy circles.

The tradition dates back to the early 1930s when then Labor treasurer Ted Theodore proposed creating a board for the Commonwealth Bank,which at the time was the nation’s central bank,that would comprise people representing particular parts of the economy.

Since 1960,the RBA has had 76 board members. They have included 41 people awarded an Australian honour,17 knights,10 women and three members of the ACTU.

Some central banks,such as in England and Canada,have a separate committee of monetary policy experts who set interest rates. Another board oversees the bank’s day-to-day operations.

There have been criticisms that the current RBA board does not have close connections to the non-business sector such as community organisations or unions. The last trade unionist on the board was Bill Kelty,who resigned in 1996.

There are some restrictions on who can be a Reserve Bank board member. People who are a director or employee of a bank are barred from a position with the RBA.

Board members are appointed for five-year terms.

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