National Assembly   |05 October 2023

Public Utilities Corporation Amendment Bill, 2023 approved

The National Assembly yesterday approved the Public Utilities Corporation Amendment Bill, 2023, with 18 members from the ruling Linyon Demokratik Seselwa, (LDS) party voting in favour of the bill, while six members from the opposition abstained. No one voted against.

The bill was presented by Minister Flavien Joubert, from the ministry of agriculture, climate change and environment, which is the parent ministry of the PUC.

When presenting the Bill, Minister Joubert explained that the amendments were being proposed to align the company with regulations set up to guide public enterprises and secondly to support measures being put in place to improve the management of the company.

“The amendment follows the publication of the new law for public enterprises that came into force in May 2023, the Public Enterprise Act, specifically Section 58 which states that the administrative council or a board, in the case of PUC, should comprise nine persons – a chairman, vice-chairman, representative of the finance ministry, a representative from the company’s parent ministry, and a minimum number of five ordinary members,” he explained.

He stated that to align the composition of the board with the provision of the Public Enterprise Act of 2023, the Bill was proposing an increase in the number of PUC board members from seven to nine.

The second amendment, which would result from the increase in board members was the number of persons required for a quorum, which would now increase from three to six.

“This will ensure decisions taken by the board remain effective and representative, in accordance with the Public Enterprise Act,” stated the minister, adding he hoped the amendments help to strengthen governance within PUC.

Patsy Canaya