SINGAPORE — Olam International’s board of directors announced on Sept. 26 several changes to the board.

In line with the plan for the on-going renewal of the board, Mark Haynes Daniell and Wong Heng Tew will be stepping down as directors from the board immediately after the close of the 20th Annual General Meeting of the company on Oct. 30.

Both Daniell and Wong are currently non-executive and independent directors of the company. Daniell chairs the Human Resource & Compensation Committee and is a member of the Audit & Compliance Committee, Governance & Nomination Committee and Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability Committee.

Wong is a member of the Audit & Compliance Committee, the Human Resource & Compensation Committee and the Governance & Nomination Committee. Daniell has served on the board for 11 years and eight months while Wong has served 10 years and eight months as of June 30.

Both played a pivotal role in the growth and development of the company including the period prior to it being listed on the Mainboard of the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited.

“The board is deeply grateful to Mark and Heng Tew for their commitment, support and contribution to the business and the  company over the years which have benefited Olam and our stakeholders,” said Chairman of the Board R. Jayachandran.

Daniell and Wong have confirmed that they have no disagreement with the board and are unaware of any matter relating to their stepping down that needs to be brought to the attention of the shareholders of the company.

Kwa Chong Seng and Nihal Vijaya Devadas Kaviratne CBE will be appointed as non-executive and independent directors of the company from  Oct. 1. Kwa, at the same time, will be appointed as deputy chairman of the board.

Seng is currently the chairman of Neptune Orient Lines Ltd, Singapore Technologies Engineering Ltd and Fullerton Fund Management Co. Ltd. He is a non-executive director of Singapore Exchange Ltd, Seatown Holdings Pte Ltd and Delta Topco Ltd. He is a member of the Defense Science and Technology Agency board of directors and also the deputy chairman of the Public Service Commission in Singapore.

He was the deputy chairman of Temasek Holdings Pte Ltd from 1997 to 2012 and a non-executive director of DBS Group Holdings Ltd and DBS Bank Ltd from 2003-12.

Kwa has more than 40 years’ experience in the petroleum industry. He started his career with Esso Singapore Pte Ltd in 1969, holding various roles in logistics, marketing and other parts of the downstream business before becoming chairman and managing director in 1992. He held this post until 1999 when he became chairman and managing director of ExxonMobil Asia Pacific Pte Ltd. He retired from this position in 2011.

Kwa was awarded the Distinguished Engineering Alumni Award by the National University of Singapore. He was conferred the Honorary Ningbo Citizenship and was awarded the Singapore Public Service Star.

Kaviratne CBE’s career with the Unilever Group spanned 40 years during which he held various senior level management positions in sales, marketing, brand and strategic planning and development, and as chairman/CEO across Asia, Europe and Latin America. He retired from Unilever in 2005.

He currently serves as an independent, non-executive director in GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals Ltd, and as chairman of Akzo Nobel India Limited (formerly ICI). He is an independent, non-executive director of several Temasek-Linked companies including StarHub Limited, SATS Limited, Wildlife Reserves Singapore, DBS Group Holdings Limited and DBS Bank Limited. He is president  commissioner of PT. TVS Motor Company Indonesia, a member of the Private Sector Portfolio Advisory Committee in India for the UK Government’s Department for International Development (DFID), and serves on the Advisory Board of Bain & Company for SEA/Indonesia.