Aim-listed Caracal Gold has appointed Noreen Kidunduhu as its new independent nonexecutive chairperson and Kevin Warrington, Martin Westerman, Hannah Wang'ombe and Edward Ruheni as independent nonexecutive directors.

As announced on March 31, the new appointments are being made as the company progresses its immediate goal to address its outstanding obligations in Kenya to key stakeholders and the community at the Kilimapesa gold mine, to restart gold mining operations at the Kilimapesa gold mine and to recapitalise the company's balance sheet ahead of a planned resumption in trading of the company's securities on the LSE.

These appointments are in addition to the recent appointment of Jason Brewer as an executive director of the company.

Kidunduhu is based in Kenya and is the founder of a boutique law firm specialising in legal services for the energy, extractives and infrastructure sectors in emerging markets.

She currently serves in several leadership and advisory roles, including as chairperson of the Association for Women in Energy and Extractives, Africa regional board member of the Global Alliance of Impact Lawyers and member of the International Chamber of Commerce's Alternative Dispute Resolution Commission (Kenya) as well as its Working Group on Environmental Goods and Services.

Westerman is based in South Africa and is currently the COO of Marula Mining.

He has over 25 years' experience in finance and the mining industry throughout Africa and has held various positions as CFO in various publicly listed and private companies in Australia, the UK and Southern Africa. 

Westerman has spent over a decade specialising in corporate restructuring and recapitalisation, International Financial Reporting Standards, financial management, corporate governance and regulatory compliance and reporting.

Caracal says his work in this area has focused on debt and equity restructuring, stabilising operations, turnaround strategies and achieving longer-term sustainable growth.

Warrington, meanwhile, is based in the UK and has over 15 years of experience in business administration and operational management, with a strong focus on project management, corporate governance and strategic oversight.

Caracal says he will work closely with other directors of the board as a representative of UK-based shareholders.

Ruheni is a Kenyan national and is currently a nonexecutive director of Aim-listed Shuka Minerals, private Tanzanian mining and exploration company Takela Mining Tanzania and also GM operations East Africa for Marula Mining.

He has over ten years of experience in project management.

Wang'ombe has over ten years' experience in stakeholder engagement, relationship building, crisis management and public policy processes at the Kenya Institute for Public Policy Research and Analysis, where she worked as a researcher and head of strategy and planning.

She was also the CEO at the Association of Women in Energy and Extractives in Kenya. She is currently the Natural Resources Program Lead at Oxfam in Kenya. Wang'ombe also serves as a nonexecutive director of Marula Mining.

The five new directors will join current independent nonexecutive director Stefan Muller and Simon Grant-Rennick who steps aside as executive chairperson and will now assume a nonexecutive director's role with the company and assist the board in continuing to strengthen its financial management, corporate governance, compliance and regulatory reporting activities.

Brewer says these strategic board appointments significantly enhance Caracal’s governance, operational oversight and stakeholder engagement capabilities at a critical time in its growth and restructuring.

“The appointment of three highly experienced Kenyan legal, financial and strategic policy and engagement executives further demonstrates our commitment to working effectively in Kenya and with all key stakeholders.

“I have obviously worked very closely with a large number of the new board of directors and I know of their abilities and their work ethics and values that they will bring to the company and our planned activities here in Kenya and East Africa.

"With this strengthened leadership team in place, the company remains firmly committed to delivering on its operational objectives in Kenya and East Africa's gold mining sector.

"I look forward to providing further updates in the coming weeks,” he says.