Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the 55th annual general meeting of Standard Bank Group Limited. My name is Nonkululeko Nyembezi, Chairman of Standard Bank Group. I'm joined on the podium by our Group Chief Executive Officer, Sim Tshabalala, as well as Group Secretary, Kobus Froneman. I wish to welcome our board members who are present today to respond to any questions from shareholders, notably the chairs of board committees and our Group Finance Director. Please allow me to introduce them all. We have Jacko Maree , who is Deputy Chairman of the group and Chairman of the board, Trix Kennealy, Lead Independent Director and Group Audit and Nomination Committees. Geraldine Fraser-Moleketi, Chairman of our Group Social, Ethics, and Sustainability Committee, and John Vice, Chairman of our Group Risk and Capital Management, as well as the large exposure credit committee. Paul Cook, who chairs our Group Information Technology Committee.
And last but not least, Arno Daehnke, who's our Group Finance Director. The remainder of our board members of the Group Leadership Council and the group's external auditors are also in attendance. As stated in the invitation to this meeting, the AGM is an opportunity for shareholders to participate in discussions relating to items outlined in the notice of the meeting and to engage with the company and the board more broadly. Shareholders can view the meeting live, vote, and ask questions both verbally and via text on the Lumi platform. To facilitate greater shareholder engagement, we've also added the option of asking questions via a video feed. The board is confident that this approach will provide an effective platform and opportunity for the shareholders to participate in the AGM.
Despite challenging conditions in 2023, with global economic growth slowing down and geopolitical tensions rising, the group achieved commendable progress, demonstrating the value of our Africa-centric strategy. Indeed, Africa's economy continues to demonstrate impressive resilience and dynamism, growing at 3.4% in 2023. According to the IMF, growth in sub-Saharan Africa is likely to reach 2.8% this year, accelerating further to cover four percent... Sorry, to over 4% over the medium term. Because of the relative slowdown in East Asia, Africa is very likely to become the fastest growing region in the world from 2026 onwards. Closer to home, South Africa, the economy grew at just 0.6% in 2023.
Our economic research team forecasts a modest recovery to 1.1% this year, with growth improving over the medium term as structural reforms continue, and we are confident that they should do so. The outcome of the recent election injects some short-term uncertainty, of course, into this particular outlook, but the election and subsequent developments have also strongly reinforced our confidence in the strength of South African constitutional democracy and its institutions and values, including the rule of law, sanctity of property and contract, and aspiration to social cohesion, and a deep commitment to human rights and human dignity, including non-racialism. Our confidence in South Africa's medium and longer-term prospects has therefore been reinforced. It is emphatically not the group's place to express a view on what the configuration of the executive branch of government should look like.
The voters have spoken, and it's now for elected representatives to reach a working arrangement that reflects those preferences and that upholds the values, goals, and legal framework enshrined in the Constitution. After the government has been formed, we will continue, as always, to advocate for policies conducive to stability, to faster growth, and to greater equity and inclusion. Inflationary pressures and increased climate-related risks have underscored the need for resilient and adaptive strategies in navigating the complexities of the modern global economy. Against a backdrop of evolving trade dynamics, digital transformation, and shifting geopolitical alliances, the group appreciates the imperative of fostering sustainable growth. We are pleased with the financial and strategic outcomes that the group has achieved in 2023, and the progress it is making towards achieving its 2025 objectives.
The group has remained vigilant and continues to focus on striking the delicate balance between seizing emerging opportunities and mitigating systemic risks in an increasingly interconnected and uncertain landscape, all the while adhering to the highest governance standards. I now refer you to the agenda for today's AGM that is flashed on the screen before we turn to the formal business of the meeting. I wish to confirm at this point that the meeting is duly constituted, and the necessary quorum in terms of the Companies Act and the company's memorandum of incorporation is present. I can confirm that at least three members are present, and together with members appointing proxies, at least 25% of the issued share capital is represented at the meeting.
I am also satisfied that the right of shareholders or their proxies to participate and vote at this meeting has been verified.
... I will now just walk you through the operation of the meeting. To facilitate a timely and smooth operation of the meeting, I will open the floor to questions in two parts. The first will deal with questions relating specifically to resolutions that are being tabled at this meeting, whereafter voting will follow. And second, once we have concluded the official business of the AGM, we will open the floor a second time for general questions. We will do our best to be as efficient as possible in order to afford all shareholders who wish to pose a general question an opportunity to do so. Any eligible shareholder or proxyholder attending the meeting is allowed to ask questions. Any member posing a question must state their name and that of the shareholder they represent, where applicable. Please follow the instructions on your screen.
I wish to remind shareholders that the reports published on our website contain comprehensive information regarding the company. The reporting suite includes detailed information in our annual financial statements, annual integrated report, governance report, remuneration report, risk and capital management report, sustainability disclosures report, report to society, and climate-related financial disclosures. In responding to shareholders' questions during the meeting, where relevant, we will refer you to the content of the aforementioned reports in instances where we believe it will comprehensively address your question. Further, should we not be in a position to provide a detailed response to any questions raised at the meeting today, we will acknowledge these as an action to be deliberated outside of this meeting and appropriately engage with you on such matters after the meeting.
With regards to special resolution number 10, the holders of second preference shares are entitled to vote in accordance with the provisions of the company's memorandum of incorporation. The proportion of a second preference shareholder's vote relative to total votes is determined by the aggregate amount of the nominal value of shares held by a secondary preference shareholder relative to the aggregate amount of the nominal value of the ordinary and secondary, and secondary preference shares issued by the company. The voting process is now open. The notice convening the meeting, containing the ordinary and special resolutions to be proposed at this meeting, was circulated to shareholders and published on the company's website on 29 April 2024. The annual financial statements, the directors' report, and the audit committee report were published on the company's website on 14th March 2024.
The group's Social, Ethics, and Sustainability Committee report was published as part of the governance report on 28 March 2024. I will take the notice and all these reports as read. As envisaged in Section 63, Subsection four of the Companies Act, a poll will be taken on all resolutions set out in the notice. The company has appointed Deloitte Incorporated to act as scrutineers for the purposes of this meeting. Shareholders or their proxies are invited to vote on resolutions at any time during the meeting. Please vote on each resolution by clicking through all the resolution numbers at the top of your screen on your devices. I will also allow time at the end of the meeting for you to finalize any outstanding votes. I will propose all resolutions. The full text of the resolutions is set out in the notice.
All the resolutions are taken as read. Starting then with the submission of our annual financial statements, the following items do not require formal resolutions. They're being presented to shareholders in line with the requirements of the Companies Act. Standard Bank Group and the Group's annual financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2023. The full audited annual financial statements for the group, including the directors' report and the report of the group audit committee, are contained in the 2023 annual financial statements booklet, which is available on the Standard Bank Group website. The report of the Group's Social, Ethics, and Sustainability Committee for the year ended 31 December 2023, this report is included in the 2023 governance report on pages 35 to 36, which is also available on the group's website.
I will now open the floor for questions relating to the annual financial statements, all the reports, and all the resolutions being tabled at the meeting. The floor is now open.
Chairman, we have a question, a text question from shareholder Mehluli Ngubane from ESG Insight, South Africa. It relates to the annual financial statements. The question is in two parts. The first is rising operating expenses. The report indicates a significant 16% increase in operating expenses, with all staff costs growing by 20%. What measures is the bank implementing to control these costs while maintaining service quality and employee satisfaction? How do you plan to improve the cost-to-income ratio in the coming years? The second part of the question relates to credit impairment charges. With the credit impairment charges increasing by 34% to ZAR 13.256 billion, what specific strategies are being adopted to mitigate credit risk... and manage impairments effectively, especially in the context of current challenging economic environment?
Thank you, Mehluli. Are there any other questions from the floor on vaguely the same topic, so we can group them together?
No further questions on text at this point, Chairman.
It's okay. In that case, I will turn over to Sim to respond to those two questions.
Thank you very much, Chairman. The first point to note is that, as we indicated when we released our results in March, we pointed out to shareholders and to society that we expected a strengthening of the South African Rand as compared to other currencies on the African continent, which would result in a tailwind for our costs. That's the first point to recognize. The second one is that we are staying very close to all the line items, whether it be staff costs, travel and entertainment, our premises costs, and our IT costs, and making sure that on the one hand, we save to invest.
In other words, we make sure that we produce savings that we will use for continued investment and growth, and at the same time, trying very hard to keep our costs well within the group's inflation relative to the South African operations and also the African operations. We're quite confident that the commitment we've made to shareholders that our cost income ratio will be approaching 50% by 2025, we're confident that we will meet that obligation. That was on costs. The second one on credit charges, clearly, with inflation and high interest rates, South African consumers are under tremendous stress, but we continue to stay close to them. We provide them with solutions, especially in the home loans part of our business.
But we're pretty confident that we've seen the worst by the end of this year. We're expecting that our credit charges will improve during the course of this year. We're taking steps to make sure that we monitoring people that are going into debt review. We're making sure that people are restructuring their loan obligations with us, to the extent that we think that they will be able to meet their obligations. We do the same in the business and commercial bank, and we do the same in the corporate and investment bank, staying close to our clients, and making sure that we are writing business that fits our risk appetite. Thank you, Chair.
Thank you, Sim. Mehluli, does that address your two questions? Do you have any follow-up?
We'll check for any responses, Chair. He posted the question as a text question, so if there's a follow-up question, we'll monitor that.
Okay. If there are no further questions, then in this section of our meeting, I will now proceed with tabling the ordinary and special resolutions to be approved at this meeting. In considering ordinary resolutions 1.1 to 1.3, please refer to the governance report, and also then take note that for ordinary resolutions number one to six to be approved by shareholders, they must be supported by more than 50% of the voting rights exercised on each of these resolutions. Ordinary resolution number six must be supported by 75% of the voting rights to be approved by shareholders. In accordance with clause 7.1 of the company's memorandum of incorporation, Paul Cook and Martin Oduor-Otieno will retire, but by rotation and being eligible, offer themselves for re-election.
Shola David-Borha, who was appointed to the board since the last AGM, retires as a director, and being eligible, offers herself for election at this meeting. In determining to present these directors to shareholders for re-election, the board has considered the overall composition and evaluated each non-executive director, taking into account their skills, expertise, knowledge, performance, independent judgment, and contribution to the board, and recommends that the above-mentioned directors be re-elected by shareholders. Atedo Peterside and Xueqing Guan will retire at the conclusion of this meeting. On behalf of the board, I would like to extend our sincere appreciation to Atedo and Dr. Guan for their contribution over the past years, and wish them well and all the best in their retirement. Abridged bios of all directors standing for re-election are included in the notice on pages five and six.
Shareholders or their proxies should now indicate their vote in respect of resolution 1.1, to approve the re-election of Paul Cook as a director of the company. Shareholders or their proxies should now indicate their vote in respect of resolution 1.2, to approve the re-election of Martin Oduor-Otieno as a director of the company. Shareholders or their proxies should now indicate their vote in respect of resolution 1.3, to approve the re-election of Shola David-Borha as a director of the company.
Chairman, we'll deal with that at the end.
Mehluli, we have noted your questions, and they will be dealt with under the governance part of our Q&A. Moving on to resolution number two, Section 94 of the Companies Act requires, among other things, that at each annual general meeting of a public company, shareholders should appoint an audit committee comprising at least three members who are independent, non-executive directors of the company. However, Section 94 of the Companies Act also states that this does not apply to the appointment of audit committee members by a company that is subject to Section 64, Subsection four of the Banks Act 94 of 1990, as amended.
Standard Bank Group Limited is the registered bank, bank controlling company of the Standard Bank of South Africa Limited, is subject to Section 64 of the Banks Act, which requires the board of directors, as opposed to shareholders, to appoint at least three of its members to serve on an audit committee. To afford shareholders the opportunity to vote on the appointment of the group audit committee members, the board has elected to propose their re-election to shareholders of the company. The board has reviewed the composition of the group audit committee against the requirements of the Companies Act and the Banks Act, and has confirmed that the members have the necessary knowledge, skills, and experience to enable the committee to perform its duties in terms of these statutes.
The appointments are made against objective criteria that include skills, knowledge, experience, and independence, with due regard for the benefits of diversity on the board, including gender. Again, we have included abridged bios of members of the group audit committee standing for re-election today, which are on pages six and seven. Shareholders or their proxies should now indicate their vote in respect of resolution 2.1 to approve the re-election of Lwazi Bam as a member of the group audit committee. Shareholders or their proxies should now indicate their vote in respect of resolution 2.2, to approve the re-election of Trix Kennealy as a member of the group audit committee. Shareholders or their proxies should now indicate their vote in respect of resolution 2.3, to approve the re-election of Nomgando Matyumza as a member of the group audit committee.
And finally, shareholder or shareholders or their proxies should now indicate their vote in respect of resolution 2.4, to approve the re-election of Martin Oduor-Otieno as a member of the group audit committee. The next two ordinary resolutions relates to the reappointment of the external auditors of the company. As noted in the SENS announcement released on the 1st of February 2022, subject to shareholder approval, KPMG Incorporated and PricewaterhouseCoopers Incorporated would continue as the joint auditors for the 2023 financial year. Whereafter, KPMG's tenure as the joint auditor would conclude following the finalization of the 2023 financial year, in accordance with the then mandatory audit firm rotation requirements. PwC would continue as the joint auditor until the finalization of the 2025 financial year.
The group also announced its intention to appoint Ernst & Young Incorporated as one of the joint auditors for the financial year ending 31 December 2024, subject to shareholder approval. The appointment of EY and the designated audit partner are subject to approval by the South African Reserve Bank's Prudential Authority in accordance with Section 61 of the Banks Act, number 94 of 1990, and Prudential Standard FC0 3, auditor requirements for holding companies or financial conglomerates. In line with global best practice, the group has decided to proceed with the rotation of PwC at the conclusion of the 2025 financial year, in accordance with the Independent Regulatory Board for Auditors Mandatory Firm Rotation ruling issued on 2 June 2017, notwithstanding the ruling on 31 May 2023 by the Supreme Court of Appeal, setting aside mandatory audit firm rotation.
As noted in the SENS announcement released on 29 August 2023, the group intends to appoint Deloitte and Touche as one of the joint auditors for the financial year ending 31 December 2026. The appointment of Deloitte and the designated audit partner will be subject to shareholder approval at the relevant AGM, and approval by the South African Reserve Bank's Prudential Authority in accordance with Section 61 of the Banks Act and Prudential Standard FC 03. For the purpose of the 2024 financial year, the audit committee has evaluated the independence and performance of PwC and EY, and has recommended their reappointment and appointment as joint auditors of the company respectively.
Shareholders or their proxies should now indicate their votes in respect of resolution 3.1, to approve the reappointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers Incorporated as auditors of the company in terms of Section 90, Subsection 1 AB of the Companies Act for the financial year ending 31 December 2024. Shareholders or their proxies should now indicate their votes in respect of resolution 3.2, to approve the appointment of Ernst & Young Incorporated as auditors of the company in terms of Section 90, Subsection 1 AB of the Companies Act for the financial year ending 31 December 2024.... Dealing now with resolution number 4, which resolution provides the directors with the ability to allot and issue non-redeemable, non-cumulative, non-participating, variable rate, par value preference shares.
The resolution places the said shares under the control of the directors, who are authorized to issue the preference shares at their discretion until the next AGM of the company, and is subject to the aggregate number of preference shares able to be issued in terms of this resolution being limited to 2.5% of the number of preference shares in issue as at 31 December 2023. The exact wording of the resolution is set out in resolution four of the notice. Shareholders or their proxies should now please indicate their vote in respect of resolution four.
The next resolution being proposed is to renew the authority to place the unissued ordinary shares of the company under the control of the directors, who are authorized to issue the ordinary shares at their discretion until the next AGM of the company, subject to the aggregate amount of shares able to be issued, being limited to 2.5% of the number of ordinary shares in issue as at 31 December 2023, provided that the limitation shall not apply to any issue of ordinary shares for acquisition of assets or where the ordinary shares are issued pro rata to the shareholder's existing shareholding. The exact wording again is set out in the notice as of the as resolution number five. Shareholders or their proxies should now indicate their vote in respect of resolution five.
The next ordinary resolution provides the directors the ability to issue ordinary shares of the company for cash that allows for issuances to related parties, limited to 1.5% of the number of ordinary shares in issue as at 31 December 2023. The exact wording of the resolution is set out in resolution number six of the notice. Shareholders or their proxies are again invited to vote in respect of resolution number six. Resolution number seven is a non-binding advisory vote.
Shareholders are requested to endorse by way of separate non-binding advisory votes as recommended by the King IV report on corporate governance and JSE listings requirements, resolution 7.1 in relation to Standard Bank Group's remuneration policy, and resolution 7.2 in relation to Standard Bank Group's remuneration implementation report, as set out from page seven and 25 respectively of the company's remuneration report, which is available on the Standard Bank Group website. Shareholders or their proxies should now vote, indicate their votes in respect of resolutions 7.1 and 7.2 to support the company's remuneration policy and endorse its remuneration implementation report. The voting is done via a separate poll on the voting platform. We now deal with the special resolutions, resolution numbers eight to 11.
For a special resolution to be approved by the shareholders, it must be supported by 75% of the voting rights exercised on that resolution. I propose that the following special resolutions be considered for adoption. Resolution number eight, or special resolution number eight, rather, shareholders are asked to approve non-executive directors' fees. The fees, as detailed in special resolutions 8.1 to 8.2 in the notice to members on page nind, were considered by the group remuneration committee and have been recommended by the board. I do not intend to read out the actual remuneration proposed, as it is set out in detail in the notice. The voting is done via a separate poll on the voting platform.
Shareholders or their proxies should now indicate their votes in respect of special resolutions 8.1 to 8.12, to approve the fees to be paid to the non-executive directors of the company during 2024, until a new resolution is presented to shareholders. Special resolution number nine, dealing with the general authority to acquire the company's ordinary shares. The directors of the company intend, if circumstances are appropriate, to implement a repurchase of the company's ordinary shares, as permitted in terms of the Companies Act, the Banks Act, and the listings requirements, either by the company or one of its subsidiaries. The purpose of this special resolution is to generally approve, in terms of the provisions of the Companies Act, an acquisition by the company and/or a subsidiary of the company of ordinary shares issued by it, subject to the listings requirements.
The exact wording of the special resolution is set out in special resolution nine of the notice. Shareholders or their proxies should now indicate their vote in respect of special resolution number nine. Special resolution ten, the directors of the company intend, if the circumstances are appropriate, to implement repurchases of the company of its non-redeemable, non-cumulative, non-participating, variable rate par value preference shares, as permitted in terms of the Companies Act, the Banks Act and the listings requirements by means of general repurchases as defined in the listings requirements. The purpose of this special resolution is to generally approve, in terms of the provisions of the Companies Act, the acquisition by the company of said preference shares, subject to the listings requirements. The exact wording of the special resolution is set out in special resolution number ten of the notice to members.
Shareholders or their proxies should now indicate their vote in respect of special resolution number 10. And finally, special resolution number 11. Companies within the group receive and provide loan financing and other support to each other in the ordinary course of business. The reason for this special resolution is to grant the directors of the company the authority to provide financial assistance to any company or corporation which is related or interrelated to the company. In terms of the Companies Act, any company which provides financial assistance to any company or corporation which is related or interrelated to it, is required to be authorised to do so in terms of a special resolution on the terms and conditions which the directors of the company may determine. Special resolution number 11, as set out in the notice, provides the company with this authority.
The exact wording of the special resolution is set out in special resolution number 11 on page 11 of the notice. Shareholders or their proxies are now invited to cast their vote in respect of special resolution number 11. Shareholders or their proxies who have not yet cast their votes for any of the resolutions should now please proceed to do so. You have a few minutes to complete your voting. Voting is done. I declare that the voting is now closed, and while we tally those votes, we will now go to the second part of the Q&A, as indicated earlier, and now address any questions of a general nature that the shareholders may wish to raise.
Chairman, if I may start, we have three questions posted by Mehluli Ngubane. They deal with general matters, sustainability question, and also a governance question. I will read them in sequence, and I'll read all three before we hand them over for responses. The first question is capital inflows and economic stability. The bank has predicted significant capital inflows in the second half of 2024, which could be impacted by geopolitical tension and economic policies in Nigeria. What measures is Standard Bank taking to mitigate the risks associated with these volatile capital inflows and ensure economic stability for its operations in Nigeria and other affected regions? That's the first question. The second question on sustainability is also from Mehluli Ngubane. Sustainability initiatives and climate policy.
Given the criticism of Standard Bank's climate policy, particularly regarding the financing of oil and gas projects like the East African Crude Oil Pipeline, how does the board plan to balance its sustainability commitments with its financial interests? What steps are being taken to address stakeholder concerns and ensure transparency in these initiatives? The third question deals with, is also from Mehluli Ngubane, and it deals with sustainability expertise at executive level. While the board is noted to have a fair representation of individuals with sustainability and climate-related expertise, there appears to be a lack of clarity on such expertise at the executive level. What steps is Standard Bank taking to ensure that its executive team is equally equipped to handle and lead the bank's sustainability and climate-related initiatives? As a second question under the same topic, board diversity and succession planning.
With the current female representation on the board at 33% and the target set for 40% by 2025, what specific actions are being taken by the nominations committee to ensure this target is met?
Thanks again, Mehluli. Sim has volunteered to take 2.5 of the questions, and I'll deal with the final one. So over to you, Sim.
Thank you. Thank you, Chairman. As far as Nigeria goes, so we note that firstly, we have got a very well-developed risk management framework at Standard Bank, as well as a well-developed management structure. We stay very close to each of our subsidiaries, and our subsidiaries are well-staffed on the ground with people that understand the economic, regulatory, and risk environment, as well as people here in Johannesburg that stay close to such issues. Secondly, in Nigeria itself, we've got a mid-sized bank, as you know, that has been in existence for over three decades, that is very, very close to both the official sector and the private sector. We're quite comfortable that the reform impetus that is gaining traction in sub-Saharan Africa generally, but in Nigeria in particular, will continue apace.
We are quite comfortable that the reforms executed by President Bola Tinubu, which include the removal of fuel subsidies and the liberalization of the exchange rate windows, is going to continue apace. We stay close, as I've said, to the authorities there as well. We're also quite comfortable that the governor of the central bank, who is a former banker, he used to be at Citibank, is the model of orthodoxy. And, as you are well aware, the monetary policy being executed in that country in the last few months, has been exemplary. They will, in our view, bring the monetary policy in that country under control. We also think that the structural reforms in other areas, including in the telecom sector, will also continue.
We therefore stay very, very close to, to, to those operations and are pretty confident that if we look through the current volatility, we will be all right. The business, as I say, is well-run. It is currently well-capitalized. There are new capital rules that are being applied, and we will be compliant, as you can expect from a, an organization such as ourselves. Just one last point on orthodoxy in the country. The Minister of Finance is also a model of orthodoxy as well, and we're quite confident in their ability to manage the fiscal environment in the country. On the second question, Standard Bank's climate policy is well known to you, but let me just emphasize a couple of points that relate to it.
The first one is that it's based on the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities for countries at different levels of development, as codified in the Paris Agreement. It also allows, and relies on the imperative, as recognized in COP28, and as consistently articulated by a number of governments on the continent, but in particular, the South African government, that, they are committed to a just transition. And then in line with the actual agreement, our policy is based on keeping average global temperature increases within 1.5 degrees, and we use the 1.5 degrees, climate scenario published by the Network of Central Banks, including our own regulator, the SARB. And as you know, that's the Network for Greening the Financial System, commonly known as NGFS.
It's important to note as far as that, those scenarios are concerned, that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change actually draws on the NGFS scenarios in its own modeling. So, it's valid to think then that the NGFS scenarios are actually as scientific as they come. In considering projects at country level, we are further guided by the relevant countries' nationally determined contributions in terms of the Paris Agreement. And so we would submit that our policy and our strategy falls within the four corners of, the Paris Agreement and falls within the four corners of each of the relevant countries' strategies. And therefore, the board is reasonable and rational in accepting such strategies.
As far as the executive is concerned, in each of our business units, we have got teams of people that are qualified in environmental science, environmental law, and sustainability in general. We go through and we provide our people with training, including the executive, and we're quite confident that at an executive level, at the GLC, which is the executive committee, and in each of our business units, we have got a substantial number of people that are experts and are adequately qualified to help us execute our policies and our strategies. Thank you.
I would just add to that last point that Sims just made, that the bank partnered with a university to actually do a bespoke training program for our executives, which actually has been proceeding rather well. We've got some individuals, in fact, doing PhD-level studies on green topics. So we are proceeding well, and it's beginning to show even to the board when, for example, the credit committee meets, it's now actually being baked into the decision-making within the bank. So that is proceeding quite well. In terms of diversity, we certainly have a serious intent to reach the 40% by next year, or end of next year, I should say.
As you would have noted, we have just recruited Shola to come back to the group, having been away for the past three-something years, as a newly elected member of the board. You should expect this to continue. We'll see quite a bit of board renewal over the next few years. You may recall that SBSA or the PA issued a directive that limits the tenure, certainly at committee level, for non-executive directors, to nine years. So this will cause quite a bit of turnover in the next two years on the board, so will create further opportunities for us to drive up that target to meet the 40% objective set. Are there any other questions?
Chairman, no questions on text at the moment. No new questions, and we also don't have any online questions at this point.
If there are no further questions, I am then going to move us to the conclusion of the meeting. I confirm that all resolutions have been passed by the requisite majority. The full set of results will be released via SENS. Ladies and gentlemen, that concludes the business of this annual general meeting. Thank you all for your attendance and participation.