"Outbound Africa: Richard Harvey on the Road" takes viewers on a journey to the remote reaches of Ghana, a country on the frontline of climate change.

CNBC's Louisa Bojesen is on the ground with Richard Harvey, a recent power player in London who stunned the business world and stepped down as CEO of global insurance giant Aviva. He left the City to travel around Africa's most challenged regions.

CNBC spends a week with him and goes beyond the environmental devastation -- beyond the human poverty -- to explore the business potential in this final frontier of emerging markets.

Richard Harvey was the long-standing CEO of AVIVA, one of the UK's largest FTSE companies, until July 2007. He was responsible for the strategic development of the group – the world’s fifth largest insurer and the biggest in the UK – and his notable achievements include the successful merger of Norwich Union and CGU in May 2000 to create Aviva.

Richard oversaw the acquisition of RAC in 2005, helped to implement the acquisition of AmerUs which expanded Aviva’s U.S. presence four-fold, and started Aviva’s work in China and India. His positions held include: Chair of the Association of British Insurers (ABI); member of the CBI’s Governing Council and the CBI President’s Committee; member of the European Financial Services Roundtable; and member of the Geneva Association.

In 2007, Richard made headlines when he surprised the corporate world and announced his early retirement at the age of 57. Richard traded his chauffeur-driven Lexus and £1.9-million pay package for a four-wheel drive and routine of roughing it as he and his wife Kay embarked on a gap year in Africa. Working with the charity Concern Universal, they travelled to some of Africa’s poorest countries: Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique and Ghana. They spent their time in the field, experiencing the continent’s challenges up close and exploring ways in which business can help.

Upon completing their gap year in 2008, Richard and Kay returned to the UK and continue to volunteer one day per week as advocates for Concern Universal. Richard brings the organisational, financial and communications expertise you would expect from a FTSE chief executive, along with a personal hands-on interest in building and engineering. His main focus at the moment is working to engage international business to invest in Africa and achieve the Millenium Development Goals (MDGs). He believes such investments will pay off in the long run as Africa trades its way out of poverty and markets emerge. 

Besides his work with Concern Universal, Richard is also an active speaker at events and is involved in the launch of a healthcare fund through the IFC (part of the World Bank).

Concern Universal:
Based in the UK, CU was established in 1976 and is an international relief and development charity that is committed to a community-led, integrated approach to sustainable development. It was awarded the UK Charity Award for International Development in 2008. CU’s mission is to support practical actions that enable people to improve their lives and shape their own futures. CU has over 400 staff and volunteers that work with in-country partners to facilitate development and emergency work that reaches more than 1.5 million people per year in some of the world’s poorest countries. For details: http://www.concern-universal.org/

Check your local listings.