The Director-General of the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA) led by the Minister of Petroleum and Energy, on Friday 11th November 2022, took the ECOWAS Regional Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERERA) delegation for a courtesy call on the President of the Gambia, H.E Mr. Adama Barrow at the State House as part of events marking the 7th ERERA Forum held in Banjul from 7 to 10 November.

The delegation comprised; the Minister of Petroleum and Energy of The Gambia, Hon. Abdoulie Jobe; the Minister of Energy of Guinea -Bissau, Hon. Augusto Paquena; the Chairman of ERERA, Mr. Koccou Tossou; the Director-General of PURA, Mr. Yusupha M. Jobe; Legal Expert of ERERA, Mr. Oumar Bangoura and the Director of Petroleum, Water and Energy of PURA, Mr. Momodou Lamin Sompo Ceesay.

The visit which come in the aftermath of the 7th Regional Electricity Forum held in The Gambia and hosted by PURA, accorded the delegation the opportunity to brief the president about some of the landmark progresses registered in the region.

The closed-door meeting highlighted key resolutions made at the just concluded Banjul Forum with a view to ensuring a well-regulated, stable, and reliable electricity supply in the region.

Talking to the press, following the meeting, the Minister of Energy of Guinea -Bissau, Paquena Augusto thanked The Gambia Government and its people for hosting the ERERA in what many described as “the most successful and well attended Forum”.

He also expressed delight over the experiences shared and network building among the regional electricity regulators, operators, and financiers.

He also enjoined member States to harness the knowledge and experiences shared for improved co-operation and partnerships to deal with the electricity challenges in the ECOWAS region.

The ERERA Chairman, Koccou Tossou said that the ECOWAS specialised electricity body intends to launch the second phase of the regional electricity market. This he stated aims to cover supply connections from Nigeria to The Gambia.

He thanked PURA and the Government of The Gambia for the level of commitment and fraternal hospitality accorded to them throughout their stay in the Gambia.

For his part, the Minister of Energy of The Gambia, Honorable Abdoulie Jobe told the press that President Adama Barrow is quite pleased with The Gambia’s hosting of the 7th ERERA Forum as it would unify and strengthen the already existing cordial partnership and cooperation among ECOWAS member States.

He said the president believes electricity should be available, affordable, and reliable for public consumption.

Minister Jobe expressed optimism that such regional convergence would go a long way towards addressing the energy insecurity in the sub-region.