Umeme gets new chief executive officer

Kampala

Mr Selestino Babungi has been appointed the new chief executive officer of Umeme. He will be replacing Mr Charles Chapman whose contract ends this month. Mr Chapman has been at the helm of the company for years.

Umeme head of communication Henry Rugamba yesterday in an interview told Daily Monitor that Mr Babungi will assume his new responsibilities early next month.

Before his appointment, Mr Babungi has been working with the power distribution company as the chief financial officer. He is known for being an astute manager who has an eye for detail.

Mr Babungi is a Fellow of the Association of the Chartered Certified Accountants (UK) and he previously worked with Ernst & Young for six years before joining Umeme in 2006 as the credit control manager.

He rose through the ranks to become the area manager before becoming the Chief Financial Officer and now the managing director.

It is not yet clear how much he will be earning although it is alleged that his predecessor has been smiling all the way to the bank with a monthly cheque of Shs125 million.

Past leadership
Under Mr Chapman, Umeme did not only increase customer base but also battled the power losses and theft, which to an extent accounts for the high prices of electricity.
His reign also came under fire from legislators who wanted Umeme contracts and that of Eskom terminated, following a recommendation by the Adhoc Committee on Energy on the performance of the electricity sub-sector in Uganda.

About Umeme
Umeme is the largest electricity distribution company in Uganda. Since commencement of its operations in 2005, the company has invested over $134m (about Shs388b), increased the customer base from 250,000 to about 460,000 customers, and reduced energy losses from more than 38 per cent to between 27-23 per cent. Umeme directly employs over 1,300 staff.

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