Dr Mohan Kaul - Executive Chairman

Dr Mohan Kaul is a decorated former diplomat and leading businessman, having enjoyed a distinguished career as a senior Director of the Commonwealth Secretariat and also the former Director General of the Commonwealth Business Council, which was formed 28 years ago.

Dr Kaul is an internationally distinguished champion of international trade, investment and emerging markets, Dr Mohan Kaul is an influential, well-connected & recognised policy adviser, business leader, social entrepreneur, development specialist and academician.

During the last 30 years, he has built an unrivalled rapport with Presidents and Heads of Governments across continents. He has led over 50 high-level initiatives and Forums, involving Heads of Government, Senior Ministers and top Business Leaders, in a number of countries primarily in South Asia and Africa including in countries which had never received FDI before. These initiatives have resulted in considerable investment in a number of countries including Ghana, India, Sierra Leone, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Uganda, Tanzania, and others.

Dr Kaul has successfully led programmes and international advisory assignments relating to good governance, public sector reforms, human resource development, privatisation, private sector development and related areas in over 40 countries including Barbados, Cameroon, Cyprus, Dominica, Fiji, Gambia, Ghana, Granada, Guyana, Jamaica, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Maldives, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, St Lucia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Swaziland, Tanzania, Trinidad and Tobago, Uganda, Zimbabwe.

Dr Kaul has been a member of the Presidential Advisory Councils of Mozambique, Uganda, Tanzania, Ghana, Nigeria, Zambia and similar councils in other countries and works closely with them. He was the Director General and Chief Executive of the Commonwealth Business Council, a Director of the Commonwealth Secretariat and an Adviser to the United Nations.

His current activities include:

  • Vice Chair and Director of Indo-UK Institute of Health, a joint initiative of Prime Ministers of United Kingdom and India with an objective to set up several private hospitals in various Indian cities in collaboration with Kings College Hospital and other NHS hospitals in the UK and working closely with UK-TI.
  • Chair, Pontaq UK-India Innovation Fund
  • Member of the Advisory Council of British Expertise
  • Member of Board of Crown Agents Foundation
  • Member of Board of Directors of Ahmedabad University, India. (Facilitated an agreement between Judge Business School of University of Cambridge and Ahmedabad University)
  • Chairman and Director of Micro Finance Company, CIGS, Chennai, India
  • Liveryman of the City of London and Member of World Traders
  • Member of Board of Directors of Europe India Chamber of Commerce (EICC), Brussels
  • Emeritus Director, Commonwealth Association of Public Administration, Canada.

He developed the Commonwealth Business Forum as an important Event adding value to the Commonwealth, and with relevance to the UK, by increasing trade and investment between the UK and Commonwealth countries.

Since 1997, Commonwealth trade has increased from USD2 trillion to over USD4 trillion and investment flows have reached over USD200 billion. The biennial Commonwealth Business Forum in conjunction with the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting is the largest international business event in the Commonwealth resulting in billions of dollars' worth of business.

Dr Mohan Kaul