SINGAPORE — Olam International Limited announced on Oct. 30 the appointment of four new directors to the board of directors and changes to the composition of the board committees.

Yutaka Kyoya and Katsuhiro Ito, both from Mitsubishi Corp., were appointed as non-executive directors of the company on Nov. 1.

Yap Chee Keong and Marie Elaine Teo will be appointed as non-executive and independent directors of the company on Dec. 1.

Kyoya is a senior vice-president of Mitsubishi Corp. and chief operating officer of the company’s Living Essential resources division. He joined Mitsubishi in 1984 and has since been engaged in the food business. Kyoya has played various roles in Mitsubishi, in Tokyo as well as in its overseas offices, including the U.S., Malaysia and Singapore. Prior to his current position, Kyoya was the deputy general manager of Living Essentials Group chief executive officer Office in 2011 before he was promoted to general manager of Global Consumer Business Development Unit in 2012. He has a degree in commerce from Waseda University, Tokyo.
Ito is a senior vice-president of Mitsubishi.  He has been with the Mitsubishi Group since 1982 and has had senior positions within the group in New York and other central functional roles in Tokyo. Before his current appointment, Ito was the senior vice-president and chief financial officer (CFO) of Mitsubishi Corporation Americas from 2012-14. He has a degree in economics from the Yokohama National University and attended the Harvard Business School Advanced Management Program in Boston, Massachusetts, U.S., in 2011.

Yap Chee Keong is non-executive independent chairman of CityNet Infrastructure Management Pte. Ltd. and the lead independent director of Tiger Airways Holdings Ltd. Concurrently, he is a non-executive independent director of Citibank Singapore Limited, InterOil Corp. and Certis Cisco Security Pte Ltd. as well as a non-executive director of Straits Trading and ARA Asset Management Limited. Previously an executive director of Straits Trading Limited and the CFO of the Singapore Power Group, Keong also serves as a board member of the accounting and corporate regulatory authority and as a member of the Public Accountants Oversight committee. He has a bachelor’s of accountancy degree from the National University of Singapore and is a fellow of the Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants and Certified Public Accountants Australia.

Teo is currently a senior advisor and partner at the Holdingham Group Ltd. Teo has over 20 years of investment experience, primarily with The Capital Group Companies where she focused on Asian banks and global emerging markets both as  an  analyst  and  investment  manager.  She  was  formerly  the chairman  of  Capital  International  Research  Group  and  managing  director  of Capital International  Inc.  Asia. Teo  has  a  bachelor’s  of  arts degree in experimental psychology from Oxford University.

“In line with our plans for Board renewal, I am pleased to welcome onboard four new Directors – Kyoya-san and Ito-san representing Mitsubishi Corporation, along with Chee Keong and Elaine as Independent Directors – to the board,” said Kwa Chong Seng Olam’s chairman. “Given their varied and rich experience, I am confident they will contribute significantly to the stewardship and leadership of the company as it continues to pursue profitable growth and build long-term value for its stakeholders.”