Message from the Chairman of the Board
The role of an independent director is to check management on behalf of shareholders and to communicate with shareholders about the company through dialogue.
I truly believe that Sojitz is steadily improving its governance structure since I became an independent director last year. It is definitely as a result of Board’s sincere efforts to address issues identified through the Board evaluation which has been conducted every year and the steady improvements we have made.
Sojitz transitioned to the Company with Audit and Supervisory Committee structure following the resolution of the General Shareholders’ Meeting held in June 2024. Due to this transition, the Board of Directors will focus its discussions and decisions on medium- to long-term management strategies and important matters that affect Sojitz, while other matters will be delegated to the executive directors to make prompt and flexible management decisions. We believe that this is an optimal institutional design for our company, which operates in various parts of the world undergoing constant change. Since 2024 will be the first year of the transition, we will strive to improve effectiveness through greater communication among the directors.
Sojitz has always been active in investor relations activities. Our top management has held numerous dialogues with shareholders and investors in Japan and overseas. In addition to our role of checking management on behalf of shareholders, we, independent directors, will also communicate with shareholders and investors to provide them with a clear picture of the company.