July 4, 2011 -- The President has appointed Mr Gerard Hoareau as the new chief executive officer of the Planning Authority, effective from 1st July 2011.  

Mr Gerard Hoareau, who holds a Bachelor's Degree in Surveying, held senior management positions in the Lands and Survey Division for eight years before moving briefly to the private sector in 2009.  In 2010 he was appointed as CEO of the Seychelles Land Transport Authority (SLTA).

Mr Hoareau will also serve as Chairman of the Planning Authority until such time as the structure and composition of the Board of the Authority, as set by law, have been reviewed.  This appointment is in line with the President's declared intention of reviewing the functioning of the Planning Authority to reduce unnecessary bureaucracy and to enable it to deliver a better and faster service.  

Mr Jones Belmont who was until recently Chairman and Chief Executive of the Planning Authority will take up a new post as Consultant on Project Management in the Department of Finance & Trade.

Mr Parinda Herath, who is presently the Deputy CEO of the SLTA, will be appointed as Acting CEO of the Agency from 1st July 2011.  Mr Herath holds a Masters Degree in Civil Engineering, and has nine years' experience in land transport engineering.

The Minister of Home Affairs, Environment, Transport & Energy has also appointed a new Board of Directors for the Seychelles Land Transport Agency, in accordance with the SLTA Act.  The Chairperson of the Board will be Ms Veronique Laporte, with Mr David Bianci as Deputy Chairperson.  The other Members of the Board will be Mr Parinda Herath, Mr Gerard Hoareau, Superintendent Godfroy Hermitte, Mr Damien Thesee, Mr Daniel Adeline, Ms Lena Desaubin and Ms Monica Figaro.

The Board of SLTA is also effective from 1st July 2011