The resignation of the president of IAPMEI, announced this Wednesday, is justified by the “need to improve the level of service to companies and the efficiency of the institution, as well as the speed in the evaluation of the incentive programs in progress”, specifically the PRR.
The order to remove Luís Prata Guerreiro from office, signed by the Minister of Economy, Pedro Reis, was published this Thursday and develops the arguments invoked in the statement announcing the replacement of the president of IAPMEI by José Pulido Valente.
Government dismisses Luis Guerreiro from IAPMEI. José Pulido Valente is the new president
The strategic importance of this public institute in the implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR) and the Digital Innovation and Transition Programme (Compete 2030) is highlighted, as well as the fact that the Portuguese business sector is dominated by micro, small and medium-sized companies.
The Government maintains that the IAPMEI has a “strategic role in increasing the resilience of our business fabric, with special attention to micro, small and medium-sized enterprises.” This is because “its mission is to promote competitiveness and business growth, as well as to support the design, execution and evaluation of policies aimed at industrial activity, aimed at strengthening innovation, entrepreneurship and business investment in companies that carry out their activity in areas under the supervision of the Minister of Economy, that is, small and medium-sized enterprises.”
The dismissal is limited to the president of the institute, because Cresap is currently running a selection process for a vice president and a member of the board of directors, and a competition is being prepared for another member.
José Pulido Valente is appointed as a replacement, but the Government will expect him to compete (and win) the contest to preside over the IAPMEI, since his appointment to the position interrupts a career of more than 20 years as director of the BCP.
The order reaffirms the objective of providing new guidelines to the management of the institute, pointing out that hiring through competitions “will have repercussions on the management model of the IAPMEI.”
The Minister of Economy had already dismissed the administration of AICEP, the investment promotion agency, arguing also the need to introduce changes in the model of governance and operation of this business entity. Pedro Reis was president of AICEP during the government of Pedro Passos Coelho.
Source: Observadora
