The Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERA) has a new board of directors following approval by cabinet on Monday.
Mr. Julius Wandera, Director of Corporate and Consumer Affairs at the Electricity Regulatory Authority confirmed Board will be chaired by Dr Sarah Wasagali Kanaabi and also includes Amb Joan Rwabyomwere, Eng Erias Kiyemba and Eng Joseph Oteng Otogo. Former Vice Chancellor of Makerere University, Prof John Ddumba Ssentamu, has also been appointed to the strong Board.
“After the term of the previous board ended yesterday, cabinet approved the reconstitution,” Mr Wandera (pictured up) told theLOCAL on Tuesday.
“Two new members have joined the Board, Eng. Kiyemba and Prof. Ddumba Sentamu. Both are high quality professionals that we are all excited to receive,” he added.
The new appointments come almost a year after the passing on of prominent member Eng. Fabian Rwamwema Tibeita, who chaired the Human Resources Committee of the Authority; and was a Member of the Technical Committee to which he provided invaluable oversight on ERA’s key functional areas. It can be inferred that Rwamwema has been replaced by Eng Kiyemba who left the Uganda Electricity Transmission Company Limited (UETCL) as managing director in 2017. He had worked with the company in different capacities since its inception.
“These are high valibre professionals, Eng. Kiyemba understands our network very well. He is thus a good addition to Eng. Oteng in the engineering supervision,” Mr Wandera explained.
“Our expectations are that this board will take the sector to higher heights, building on the achievements of the previous board. The sector is currently dogged by poor supply reliability. I am sure this is going to be a key focus area for the new board. To make sure power is available at all times,” he said.
From Shortage to Surplus
The country has made significant progress and, with significant private capital investment, transitioning from a supply deficit before 2005 to a surplus—generation capacity that has tripled to nearly 1,200 megawatts (MW) today and is set to increase to 1,800 MW by the end of 2021 with the addition of the Karuma dam.
Led by Ziria Tibalwa Waako, ERA is mandated by the Electricity Act, 1999, to issue electricittion, transmission, distribution, sale and import incenses, set License conditions and ensure compliance to license conditions by licensees. ERA is also mandated to establish a tariff structure, approve rates of charges among other functions.
In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, ERA has been steadfast in ensuring a seamless supply of power to homes and serving critical national services, including referral hospitals, water services, security, and telecommunication. The regulator directed all power companies to have staffing plans in place to ensure that operators of power plants, line workers, customer care staff, and other staff continue delivering a reliable service as expected by the consumers of electricity.
