Madam Proscovia Nabbanja, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Uganda National Oil Company, says it is critical for African governments to build the capacities of its people to create indigenous experts that can explore the continent's rich oil and gas resources.
She said Africa's oil and gas resources presented significant opportunities for growth, however, countries continued to face the challenges of translating oil wealth into long term economic benefits for the people.
Madam Nabbanja said: 'Certainly, oil and gas projects are capital intensive and require long term commitments… the ability to develop local capacities to create indigenous giants that can explore the resources is critical, otherwise Africa's vast oil and gas potentials may remain untapped.'
She was speaking at the Seventh three-day Local Content Conference and Exhibition (LCCE), which was organised by the Petroleum Commission, in Takoradi.
The LCCE, aimed at promoting local content and participation to grow the upstream petroleum sector, was on the theme: 'Attracting Exploration and Production Investments to Boost Local Content - New Pathways.'
It brought together major local and international stakeholders in the petroleum industry to discuss and share ideas, and perspectives on how to grow, attract and retain investments to boost local contents.
Madam Nabbanja stated that for the oil and gas sector to have lasting impacts in the lives of Africans, there was the need for all industry players to ensure that local content was at the heart of every project they executed.
'Local content is a crucial aspect of Africa' economic transformation and plays a key role in ensuring sustainable development, economic prosperity, and inclusive growth across the continent.
'Our governments must design policies that encourage foreign investments, while ensuring that the benefits of the resource development are shared equitably,' she noted.
Madam Nabbanja said local content policies in Africa must aim to achieve three primary objectives, namely; maximising local employment and business participation, enhancing technology and skills transfer, and balancing investments for governments.
She said: 'We must collaborate and put in place strategies to maximise local content development and ensure that oil and gas wealth benefits local businesses at lower costs.'
She commended the Petroleum Commission for organising the LCCE, and said it represented a path for collaboration and economic opportunities for growth.
Source: Ghana News Agency