The government of Sao Tome and Principe has dismissed the management of the public company for water and electricity (EMAE), given the “degrading situation” of the sector in the country and “disorder and mismanagement” at the company, the executive announced.
At a meeting of the Council of Ministers, which the Prime Minister, Patrice Trovoada, presided over online, the São Toméan government decided to remove the director general of EMAE, Celestino da Graça Andrade, and appoint Helio Fernandes da Costa Lavres as interim CEO.
In a statement posted on social media, the executive justifies the decision with “the degrading situation that has been seen in the water and energy sector in the country” – often affected by power cuts – as well as “the disorder and mismanagement that are seen in EMAE.
The government further states that “under the EMAE restructuring program, established with the World Bank, for the recovery of the energy sector, the appointment by tender is required for the hiring of technical staff for the different sectors” of the company and states that the terms of reference for this tender are being prepared.
In addition to the director-general, the administrative and financial, commercial, electricity, and water directors have been replaced.
In the same statement, the government said that economic operators “guarantee the supply [of basic necessities] this Christmas season” and that rice, donated by Japan, will arrive in the country early this week.
During the election campaign, Patrice Trovoada defined the fight against hunger as the country’s main urgency and promised to lower the price of rice from Japan.
The government, the statement added, “has analyzed very carefully the price at which rice should be sold so that it is as affordable as possible for the populations, especially the most vulnerable, and within days will announce the price at which rice will be sold to the final consumer.