Nestle appoints new chairman, as Ifezulike steps down

David Ifezulike, the chairman of Nestle Plc’s board of directors for consumer goods, has made his retirement from the company official and named his successor.

Gbenga Oyebode, an independent non-executive director on the Nestle board, will succeed Ifezulike, according to him.

At the company’s 54th annual general meeting, held on Wednesday in Lagos, the retiring chairman made this statement.

He continued, saying that he had served as board chairman for ten years and that he wanted to name his successor at the start of the AGM so that Oyebode would have a chance to hear the shareholders’ worries and expectations.

It has been an honor for me to serve in this capacity, and I would like to introduce my successor, Mr. Gbenga Oyebode, on behalf of the company. I brought him up front so he could hear everyone’s complaints and address them.

“The company’s interest is the only thing that matters to us.”

On February 24, 2014, Oyebode was chosen to join the Nestle board of directors. He serves as director of both CFAO Nigeria and Lafarge Africa and is the chairman of Okomu Oil Palm Plc.

At the meeting, the FMCG company’s shareholders approved the proposed final dividend of N36.50 for the fiscal year 2022.

The board of directors had previously declared an interim dividend of N25 from the profit of 2022 and had recommended the payment of a final dividend of N36.50 (2021: N25.50) per share.

The after-tax profit for 2022 was used to calculate the final dividend proposal of N36.50. The total dividend paid out during the year was N61.50.

From N351.82 billion to N446.81 billion in the 2022 fiscal year, Nestle’s revenue increased by 27%.