------- The Komati Foundation -------

The Komati Foundation was established in 1999 by a group of seven businessmen and professionals. The group has expanded since then to include others.

The founding group, who are also the directors of the non-profit organisation, had grown to know one another professionally and socially, and in various discussions about how best to contribute to the upliftment of society, the idea emerged to establish a non-profit organisation focused on the development of leaders.

It is recognised that whilst many have already become involved in a range of educational and social upliftment programs, there is a real need to build a cadre of young leaders who will be points of positive influence as they move into positions of leadership in their chosen fields. In short, the founders believe that a highly effective way of accelerating positive social development is to influence the influencers, as well as the future influencers, notably students.

It is recognised, too, that there is powerful evidence (both historical and current) that those who are most effective in positively influencing society are precisely those who have a a deeply-held ethic of personal integrity, a strong social conscience, coupled with developed professional and implementation skills.

Since one of the major inhibitors to development in South Africa (and indeed throughout the developing world) is the dearth of ethical and skilled leaders, the founders believe that investment in this area will provide the biggest benefit to society over the medium and longer term. This investment, more than almost any other, has the potential for exponential growth in benefit as the new young leaders move into positions of influence and in turn involve themselves in social development programs.

The current Executive Committee of the Foundation consists of five professionals with extensive experience in local and international organisations. This work is undertaken without remuneration in any way (as stipulated in the Foundation's Articles of Association).

Chairman	Andrew Kamau	Mr Kamau was born in Kenya, where he attended school in Nairobi and graduated from the University of Nairobi with a BSc (Hons) in Chemistry. He started his working life with Esso Petroleum in Nairobi and thereafter helped set-up operations of Engen in East Africa. He was transferred to Engen’s trading office in London where he worked for a year until the closure of that office. He was then recruited by a Swiss trading company based in Zug and after one year moved back to London with Marc Rich Investments. After a brief time in London, Mr Kamau was seconded to the Johannesburg office to manage the company’s oil trading operations in the region and to lend a hand in the Black Economic Empowerment initiative in the country. In November he left Marc Rich Investment to join Aurora Energy Trading Ltd, where he is the Director of Marketing – SADC. During his two years in South Africa he has managed to forge numerous relationships with BEE companies that have resulted in the development of profitable partnerships. Mr Kamau is married to Wangui and they have two children, Njeri (5) and Kamau (3). He enjoys golf, photography and theatre.

Vice Chairman	Arthur Williamson	Mr Williamson has twenty years' experience in the publishing and Information Technology industries. He started his working career as an editor with McGraw-Hill, where he was responsible for publishing technical books in the tertiary education field. He joined IBM Corporation in 1984 as a communications specialist, and after stints at IBM's Entry Systems (PC) Division in Boca Raton, USA, he headed IBM SA's personal systems marketing group. In 1992 he was recruited as an executive in Microsoft Corporation's Africa/India/Middle East division and served as sales and marketing director for 5 years. Married to Sue, a clinical psychologist, and the father of three children, he is currently pursuing private interests, and lives with his family in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Treasurer	Andrew Woghiren

Secretary-General	Andres Merino

Executive Committee	Diego Mercier
Directors of the Komati Foundation
	Andrew Woghiren Andres Merino Joan Ibeziako Jane Kebera