Ecobank Transnational Incorporated today announced that it has set up a new committee to search for new Board members.

The seven member search Committee consists of two former chairmen (Mr. Gervais Djondo and Chief Philip Asiodu), two representatives of the current board and three shareholder representatives.

The Committee has been established as part of the detailed 51 point Governance Action Plan agreed by shareholders at an Extraordinary General Meeting held at Ecobank’s pan African Centre in Lomé on Monday 3 March 2014. It will be assisted by an external search firm.

The move to reconstitute the Board at Ecobank Transnational Incorporated follows recommendations made by West African regulators of the Stock Exchanges where Ecobank is listed as well as from a report by the Global Board Center of the renowned Swiss business school, the International Institute for Management Development (IMD).

The IMD report by their Global Board Center followed a review of ETI’s corporate governance, including the size and constitution of the Board, its procedures for managing related party transactions as well as its committee structures and incentive policies.

The search Committee will recommend potential Board members to the shareholders of Ecobank Transnational Incorporated at their Annual General Meeting, to be held in June.

At their Extraordinary General Meeting on Monday 3 March the shareholders agreed to limit the size of the Board to a maximum of fifteen people. It will comprise representatives of both majority and minority shareholders; executives and independent directors.

In addition the reconstituted Board will reflect the geographical spread of Ecobank Transnational Incorporated as well as a more balanced gender and professional mix.