Qatar to send female representative to VW supervisory board

Qatar, a major shareholder in Volkswagen, is to send a female representative to sit on the German carmaker's supervisory board, VW said today.
"The board of management and supervisory board of Volkswagen AG are nominating Hessa al Jaber for election by shareholders to the supervisory board," the group said in a statement.
Al-Jaber "is to take office on behalf of Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), succeeding Akber al Baker," the statement said.
Al-Jaber, an engineer who studied at the Kuwait University and George Washington University, has served as minister of information and communications technology in Qatar since 2013.
"She will be the first woman to represent the State of Qatar on the supervisory board of an international group," VW said.

VW shareholders will vote on the appointment to the 20-seat supervisory board the annual meeting on June 22.

QIA is a shareholder in VW and other companies such as Credit Suisse, Lagardere and Vivendi, via Qatar Holding
Qatar Holding owns a 14.6-per cent stake in VW. And media reports have suggested it is pressing for one its representatives to sit on the supervisory's board powerful steering committee.
Once Al-Jaber is elected, she will be one of three women -- alongside Annika Falkengren and Louise Kiesling -- who hold one of the 10 supervisory board seats reserved for shareholder representatives.
Germany introduced a new gender quota at the beginning of the year obliging companies to appoint women to at least 30 percent of supervisory board positions.

VW is currently engulfed in a global engine-rigging scandal after it was revealed last September that it had installed emissions-cheating software in 11 million diesel engines worldwide.