DURBAN - Kaap Agri has paid its chief executive Sean Walsh a total remuneration package of R6.98 million for the year to end September 2019, up by 52.74 percent compared to 2018’s figure of R4.57m, according to the group’s annual report released yesterday.
Walsh’s 2019 package was boosted by the inclusion of R2.09m amount he received in the form of a long-term incentive (LTI) scheme, which was not paid in 2018.
However, his annual salary of R4.47m was up by 8.5 percent compared to R4.12m he received a year earlier. The 2019 figure also included a travel allowance of R80 000 and a retirement contribution of R342 000.
The group’s financial director, Graeme Sim, received a total remuneration package of R4.15m in 2019, up by 40.2 percent compared to 2018’s total remuneration package of R2.96m.
Sim’s 2019 package also included an LTI of R955 000. His annual salary of R2.79m was up by 10.28 percent compared to 2018’s annual salary of R2.53m. Sim also did not get an LTI in 2018.
The two executive directors’ combined total package amounted to R11.13m, which was up by 47.81 percent compared to a combined total package of R7.53m paid in 2018.
Chairman of the remuneration committee Chris Otto said their reward philosophy focused on entrenching a high performance culture where excellence is rewarded and mediocrity is unacceptable.
“We ensure remuneration is appropriately set against a variety of factors. These include the complexity of functions, the scope of accountability, market practice and competitiveness, the alignment of risks and rewards, and the long-term objectives of the group and its shareholders. "We are committed to the principle of equitable remuneration.
However, we acknowledge some jobs with similar grades will earn different total guaranteed pay determined by market factors and justified by, for example, a shortage of skills and performance-based increases,” Otto said.
In the year to end September, the group reported a 29.1 percent increase in revenue to R8.5bn, mainly driven by a 10.6 percent increase in the number of transactions stemming from strong organic growth and expansion activities while headline earnings per share (Heps) increased by 14 percent to 397.85 cents a share.
During the peiord, Kaap Agri weathered the agriculture sector's slower-than-anticipated recovery from drought and stressed consumers to deliver shareholders a dividend 5.8percent higher in the year to end September.
The group has ten non-executive directors and their fees consist of a fixed annual fee for services as a director and fixed fee for duties on committees. Their combined fees for 2019 amounted to R3.54m.