BAT Gets First Malaysian MD

Source from:  Bernama 09/02/2009

William Toh Ah Wah will be Malaysia's first ever Malaysian managing director of British American Tobacco (Malaysia) Bhd (BAT Malaysia) effective October 1. Toh is currently the head of Indonesia area (covering markets of Indonesia, Thailand and Philippines) and the regional project manager for BAT Asia Pacific. Toh joined the company in 1981 as a management trainee and held various marketing roles including area manager and marketing manager. Then, he took up lead positions in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, New Zealand and Pakistan and in 2007, he was promoted to director of BAT's South East Area (Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka). Meanwhile, the present managing director of BAT Malaysia, Jack Bowles, has been promoted to the British American Tobacco p.l.c. management board position as regional director, Western Europe. He will relocate to the group's headquarters in London. In a statement today, the company said Bowles had succeeded in strengthening the company's leadership position in Malaysia's tobacco industry despite the mounting illicit trade challenges. BAT Malaysia is part of the BAT group, which is the world's leading tobacco group and the second largest stock market listed tobacco group in the world by global market share. Enditem