Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) and Minister for Mines, Energy, and Rural Electrification, Bradley Tovosia announced the appointments he made on Friday.
The New Board of Directors for the Solomon Islands Water Authority (SIWA) has been appointed in a swift move to strengthen the authority after its removal as a state-owned enterprise (SOE).
Their appointments were made under paragraph 1(1) of the Second Schedule to the Solomon Islands Water Authority Act (Cap. 130), which allows the Minister to appoint a Board of Directors for two years.
The new Board of Directors includes; Dr. Culwick Togamana as Chairman, Dr. Christopher Vehe, Alan McNeil, Dr. Melchior Mataki, Mckinnie Dentana, Mostyn Mangau, and Namoi Rawali Kaluae as members.
In Parliament, Minister Tovosia said the removal of SIWA as an SOE was driven by the persistent need for SIWA to deliver its services to the people of the Solomon Islands.
Solomon Water has been plagued by weak governance structures that have eroded its accountability to both the Government and the people of the Solomon Islands.
Tovosia said, poor oversight and the mismanagement of resources have led to inefficiencies and a failure to meet critical performance indicators.
He added that SIWA has consistently under-delivered on its mandate to provide reliable water services, particularly in urban areas as it failed to achieve the deliverables under its 5-year Action Plan 2017-2022.
“This failure is in direct contravention of the Solomon Islands National Development Strategy (NDS 2016-2035) and international commitments under the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), specifically Goal 6 on ensuring the availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all,” Tovosia said.
Much of Solomon Water’s infrastructure remains outdated and is in dire need of modernization. Leaking pipelines and run-down facilities have resulted in high non-revenue water losses and frequent service disruptions. Despite access to resources and partnerships aimed at improving infrastructure, Solomon Water has been unable to execute the necessary upgrades.
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-OPMC
