13/05/2019 (Agence Europe) – The recent appointment of Chiara Manfletti, programme advisor and close associate of the Director General of the European Space Agency (ESA), Jan Wörner, as head of the Portuguese Space Agency, is sparking debate within the space sector, reports the French newspaper La Tribune in an article dated Monday 13 May. The appointment of the Italian-German to head a Portuguese national organization would raise issues of conflict of interest, insofar as Ms Manfletti would remain an advisor to the Director General of the ESA. This situation represents a conflict of interest, according to the newspaper, because Ms Manfletti, head of the Portuguese agency “co-monitors” the decisions of the Director General as a member of the ESA Council, while contributing “to the compiling and coherence of all ESA programmes in the preparation for the ministerial meeting”. To read the article (in French): https://bit.ly/2Jkm1Zl. (PH)