Metair CEO Sjoerd Douwenga resigns due to health reasons

Metair announced that Sjoerd Douwenga resigned as chief executive officer and executive director, effective 31 January 2024, due to health reasons.

Douwenga is a chartered accountant with extensive experience in the financial and corporate fields in South Africa and globally.

After qualifying as a chartered accountant in 2003 and completing his articles with PwC, he spent approximately eight years at the company’s deals division.

During this period, he gained extensive experience in acquisitions across various sectors in Africa and Europe.

He started working with Metair in 2011 during the Rombat acquisition and was subsequently appointed business development director at First National Battery in 2013.

In this position, he was primarily involved in operational and financial evaluation and execution of new acquisitions. He was subsequently appointed as chief financial officer in 2014.

Douwenga served as interim CEO in January 2021. He was also appointed interim CEO and a member of the social and ethics committee on 22 March 2023.

The Metair board said he served the organisation with dedication, first as chief financial officer and most recently as CEO.

Metair said it is grateful for Douwenga’s meaningful contribution during his tenure, adding that it understands his decision and wishes him well.

“The board wants to assure all stakeholders that the Metair leadership team is stable, experienced, and skilled,” Metair said.

“A recruitment process to identify Douwenga’s successor has already commenced, and the board has put a plan in place to ensure leadership continuity during the transition.”

In this regard, Douwenga will remain available to Metair until 31 March 2024 to ensure an orderly handover.