Cabinet approves Danie du Toit as new head of Denel

The turnaround is meant to arrest the current decline in the company’s performance MONHLA HLAHLA Denel board chairman

CABINET has approved the appointment of Daniel du Toit as the new group chief executive for Denel.

In a joint statement, the Ministry of Public Enterprises and the Denel board said Du Toit brought with him a wealth of experience in the defence and manufacturing sectors and a solid career track record that would be of value to the Denel group.

“This year, the Denel board’s first endeavours were to stabilise the company’s management and to appoint a permanent group chief executive with the kind of industry experience Du Toit commands.”

“He will be able to build on the turnaround strategy for Denel that was introduced earlier this year.

“We look forward to working with Mr Du Toit to provide direction to Denel and its divisions, in line with the company’s vision, core values and strategic drivers,” said Monhla Hlahla, Denel board chairman.

“The board and management will continue with the implementation of solid initiatives to strengthen governance, inject liquidity and restore the company’s reputation and credibility.”

Armscor chief executive Kevin Wakeford told Reuters recently that Denel’s woes put at risk an industry estimated to directly employ around 15000 people. Armscor is responsible for procuring military hardware for South Africa’s armed forces.

Described as an external candidate, Du Toit, known as “Danie”, would be critical in strengthening the executive management capacity of the company, the statement read.

Du Toit has a master’s degree in commerce and completed the Gibbs executive development programme. He joins Denel having recently vacated a managing director position at Saab Medav Technologies in Germany.

He has held executive positions at Saab and Altech Multimedia.

“The reputational damage Denel suffered over the past two years had led to a loss of confidence from stakeholders, including the banking and investment community, who in turn were unwilling to extend credit facilities to the company,” Hlahla said.

“The turnaround is meant to arrest the current decline in the company’s performance, inculcate a culture of sound corporate governance that is underpinned by ethical values and integrity – including instituting sound internal controls – and to restore the company’s position as a strategic national asset and industry leader.

“Denel shares the government’s commitment to contribute to the broader socio-economic upliftment of society, especially in job creation, poverty alleviation, enterprise development and the growth of our technology skills base. We will continue to work with our stakeholders to ensure these objectives are being achieved.

“Our immediate priority is for the company to return to profitability and operational sustainability”

Du Toit is expected to assume duty on January 14.

Hlahla said the Denel board, working with the Department of Public Enterprises and the National Treasury, was committed to ensure that the turnaround plan would set the group on a trajectory of sustainable growth.

In part, the plan includes exploring joint venture partnerships at product and divisional levels for increased export market access.

Plans to turn around the company are further supported by the Department of Defence.

“It is essential to ensure that critical sovereign assets, intellectual property and critical skills that reside within Denel, in support of national security, are retained,” Hlahla said. |