BAT NF - Corporate Governance
The Foundation’s Board of Directors meets a minimum of three times a year and comprises a mix of external members and British American Tobacco employees. Governance is assured through a balance of internal and external expertise, regular audits and the technical committee.
Technical Committee
The Technical Committee comprises six members, including two external experts with broad professional experience in agriculture and development planning. The other four members are drawn from the BATN Foundation, BAT and BAT Iseyin Agronomy.
Meeting at least three times a year, the Committee members are, among other things, responsible for defining the Foundation’s technical strategy and implementation as well as developing and monitoring standards, processes, new technologies and methods of measurement that are designed to improve the Foundation’s performance.
In terms of the Technical Committee’s relationship with the Board, it reviews and submits technical proposals to the Directors, responding to their technical requests and keeping them informed on technical developments.
The Technical Committee’s scope of responsibility includes but is not limited to:
- Providing advice on market access (distribution, marketing) and expansion projects aimed at improving links between small farmers in rural communities and the urban markets.
- Supporting the testing and scaling up of projects aimed at developing small businesses around reforestation and agro-forestry.
- Validating research and proposing projects for improving harvest, storage and processing with a focus on recycling waste, increasing the use of by-products and preventing pre- and post-harvest losses.
- Reviewing materials developed to facilitate training in natural resource management, livestock management and productivity improvement.