The chief executive of Oxfam GB, one of the UK’s largest charities, today announced he is leaving at the end of the year.
Danny Sriskandarajah, who succeeded Mark Goldring in 2018, will take up a new role as chief executive of the New Economics Foundation.
When he took over at Oxfam the charity was under huge pressure in the wake of revelations published in The Times newspaper on 9 February 2018.
It said that in 2011 Oxfam workers in Haiti had sexually exploited victims of the 2010 earthquake and that the charity had subsequently failed to pass on the full details of the misconduct to the relevant authorities.
In a press release about his departure, Oxfam did not refer directly to the Haiti scandal, but praised Sriskandarajah for championing the organisation’s “efforts to strengthen its safeguarding”.
The release said: “During his tenure, the organisation launched a new strategy focused on tackling the inequalities that trap people in poverty and transforming the way Oxfam works.”
Sriskandarajah said: “It has been a privilege to lead Oxfam GB and be a part of the important work we do, offering swift responses to devastating emergencies, providing shelter and support for people facing war and persecution and tackling the injustices that cause poverty.
“At the same time, we have made considerable progress in shifting power to the Global South, to the people and partners we work with around the world.”
He added: “Charities like Oxfam represent the best of a compassionate and internationalist Britain.
“Thanks to our supporters, volunteers and staff, we continue to make a difference helping those most in need around the globe.”
Charles Gurassa, Oxfam GB chair, said: “I would like to thank Danny for his inspirational leadership, vision and commitment.
“We are very grateful for the role he has played in leading Oxfam over the last five years, co-ordinating our response to the many complex and challenging humanitarian crises around the world while steering the charity successfully through the many difficulties posed by the Covid-19 pandemic.
“During Danny’s tenure Oxfam has made real strides in addressing injustice and inequality and placed increasing emphasis on ensuring that our work takes place in a way that is consistent with our values. We wish him well in his new endeavour.”
Sriskandarajah, who is on a research and writing sabbatical at the International Inequalities Institute at the London School of Economics and will return in mid-August to continue until the end of this year, has faced some controversy in recent months.
In March, he and Oxfam were attacked by critics, including Piers Morgan and the Daily Mail, who described the charity’s new inclusive language guide as “wokery”. The Mail ran a front-page ‘Beyond Parody’ headline.
Sriskandarajah came out fighting, writing in The Guardian that the reaction was “offensive and divisive”.
Earlier this month, Oxfam apologised and edited a Pride video after being inundated with accusations that the clip had included a derogatory caricature of the writer JK Rowling.
The cartoon depiction showed a woman wearing a ‘Terf’ badge and pointing angrily at a group of figures in rainbow colours.
In November last year, the charity’s latest accounts indicated it was bouncing back from Covid-19.
Figures for the year to March 2022 showed that its income was £373m, up 8 per cent compared with 2020/21.
Total spending was £329.1m, down from £368.8 in the previous 12 months.
Oxfam ended the year with a surplus of £44m, compared with losses of more than £24m when Covid-19 hit trading and fundraising income in 2020/21.