News story

DFID confirms new board appointments

Vivienne Cox appointed to DFID's management board

This was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

The UK Government鈥檚 battle against global poverty will be given an injection of private sector expertise following today鈥檚 appointment of Vivienne Cox to the Department for International Development鈥檚 (DFID) management board.

Vivienne Cox is the former CEO and Executive Vice President of BP鈥檚 Gas, Power and Renewables businesses, and had over 25 years experience with the company.聽She also serves as a non-executive director at Rio Tinto and聽Vallourec SA, and is the Chair of Climate Change Capital.聽Vivienne is the Patron of St. Francis Hospice Charity.

Andrew Mitchell, International Development Secretary, said:

鈥淚 want to usher in a new culture of private sector-led development at DFID, an example for other development bodies to follow.

鈥淰ivienne鈥檚 appointment is a key part of these efforts. Not only will she inject some business-savvy DNA into the department, but her wealth of experience and knowledge will give a valuable boost to our efforts helping the world鈥檚 poorest people escape from poverty.

As well as Vivienne鈥檚 appointment, Doreen Langston was also reappointed as a DFID non-executive director. Chair of the DFID Audit Committee and non-executive director on the DFID Management Board since 2008, Doreen has formerly served as Finance Director and Head of Operations at Daiwa Investment Bank, Chief Operating Officer at Banco Santander and Chief Accountant at HSBC.

DFID鈥檚 appointments came as part of an unprecedented reform of Whitehall departments to boost its strategic and operational leadership with the appointment of senior leaders from outside Government onto departmental boards.

The new departmental boards will help guide departments through a significant period of transformation. They will monitor and assess the effectiveness of decisions, ensuring that inputs are being successfully translated to impacts.

Updates to this page

Published 16 December 2010