Libreville, Tuesday 30 June 2026 – For years, the debate around Gabon’s water and electricity crisis has centred on the consequences: repeated blackouts, water shortages, load-shedding and public discontent. But a fundamental question has rarely been asked: have the people who truly understand the networks, installations and technical constraints been listened to enough?

The meeting held this week between President Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema and SEEG agents at the Jean Violas Vocational Centre in Owendo could mark a major turning point in understanding this national crisis. For nearly three hours, the head of state agreed to hear directly from those who, for years, have lived the realities on the ground.

The assessment delivered by the agents was unambiguous. Beyond the ageing infrastructure, one of the deepest problems at SEEG lies in the gradual marginalisation of technical expertise in decision-making processes.

Putting technicians’ voices at the heart of the diagnosis

One agent with more than twenty years of experience explained: “We see the problems every day. We know what needs to be done. But the decisions are made by people who don’t go into the field.” His testimony summed up what many workers have been saying for a long time. Technicians observe failures, identify risks, propose solutions, but their recommendations are not always taken into account in strategic trade-offs.

Behind this criticism lies a reality observed in many state-owned enterprises around the world. When decisions gradually move away from operational realities, dysfunctions accumulate until they become structural.

Other agents echoed the same sentiment. Electricians, electromechanics, network engineers, water specialists and maintenance staff described a system where technical expertise does not always occupy the place it should in the decision-making chain.

The parallel with some major international companies is striking. The crises experienced by Boeing, often cited by industrial management specialists, showed what happens when administrative or financial imperatives gradually take precedence over technical requirements. Conversely, groups like Mercedes have long built their success on the decisive influence of engineers in strategic choices.

Water: a design challenge as much as a production one

The exchanges also shed light on several realities unknown to the general public.

Regarding water supply, the agents explained that the difficulties do not only stem from breakdowns or ageing installations. The issue of pressure is a determining factor. When available volumes become insufficient, pressure drops mechanically, preventing water from reaching certain neighbourhoods or certain floors of buildings.

This situation worsens during the dry season. The resource currently exploited from the Ntoum river naturally undergoes low-water levels, a phenomenon that reduces the level and flow of available water.

This reality reignites a strategic question. Why not take advantage of the current sector overhaul to consider a larger abstraction directly connected to the Kango river, whose volumes remain much more abundant and stable throughout the year?

Such an orientation would obviously require considerable investment. But it corresponds precisely to the logic of structuring infrastructure that must accompany the needs of a growing country.

Reform will only succeed with the right skills

The upcoming creation of the Gabonese Water and Electricity Company (Gabonaise des Eaux et d’Électricité du Gabon) represents a historic opportunity. Rarely has the country had such an important chance to completely rebuild two strategic enterprises.

But the success of this transformation will not depend solely on funding or equipment. It will rest above all on the ability to put technical skills back at the heart of the system.

The direct exchange between the head of state and the agents demonstrated one essential thing. The answers often already exist inside the organisations themselves. They lie with the men and women who design, maintain and operate the infrastructure on a daily basis.

The real lesson of this meeting may be this: the future entities that will succeed SEEG must rely more heavily on their engineers, their technicians and their specialists. Because in sectors as sensitive as water and electricity, infrastructure can be financed by the state. But only expertise, listening to the field and competence can guarantee sustainable public service. That is probably the most important lesson Gabon can draw today from its energy and water crisis.