Nigel Harris to step down as chief executive

15 May 2015

Nigel Harris has announced that he is stepping down as chief executive at Farm Africa to take up the role of chief executive at Tearfund. Announcing his resignation, Nigel said:

“It has been an honour to serve as Farm Africa’s chief executive since 2011, at a time of real growth for the organisation. This year we anticipate working with more than one and a half million farmers and their families, and being part of that growth and impact has been deeply exciting and genuinely humbling. 

“Leading an organisation that is helping to create permanent change among smallholder communities in east Africa has been truly rewarding, and I want to thank all of my incredible staff for their commitment, deep expertise and great professionalism in all they do, and the board of trustees for its amazing support. I would also like to thank Farm Africa’s thousands of dedicated supporters and many institutional funders, without whom our work would not be possible.”

Richard Macdonald, chairman of Farm Africa, said:

“We would like to thank Nigel for his outstanding leadership over a period when Farm Africa’s reach in numbers of beneficiaries we work with has more than doubled. Farm Africa is going from strength to strength, and we are in a very good position to effect even greater change going forward in the communities we work with in east Africa.  

“In guiding our strategy and creating the platform for our continued growth, Nigel has played a vital role in helping Farm Africa transform the lives of millions of smallholder farmers during his time as chief executive. I am pleased that Nigel is staying through to the end of October this year, and the Board and I will work with Nigel and his team to ensure an effective handover. We will begin the search for Nigel’s successor straightaway, and are committed to finding the right person to lead the organisation forward.”