The federal government believes that it is time for African countries to reposition local content in the oil and gas sector in order to maximise the value chain, boost the sector and develop the continent.
The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Heineken Lokpobiri, made this appeal at the 3rd edition of the African round table on local content in Abuja. The two-day round table on the theme of "Improving the development and deployment of local content in the oil and gas industry in Africa".
This meeting is an annual gathering of stakeholders in the African oil and gas industry. The aim is to examine the approaches and regulations used to promote local content throughout the industry's value chain and to address the impending challenges.
The Minister said the meeting had been organised to create a database of available skills in order to take advantage of the African Continental Free Trade Area (ACFTA) protocol to facilitate labour mobility between member countries, thereby reducing dependence on Western nations for labour expertise.
He congratulated the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) and other partners for sponsoring the event. He added that the organisation of the round table was in line with President Bola Tinubu's programme of renewed hope. The Minister said that the President's programme was aimed at positioning the Nigerian economy to turn inward to meet the needs for goods, services and labour of the strategic sectors of the country's economy.
According to Lokpobiri, Africa is widely known for supplying raw materials to other countries in the world with the capacity to explore, produce and transform its hydrocarbon resources into petroleum derivatives for its own use and export markets.
"We recognise the immense economic and social impact of hydrocarbon reserves. With around 125 billion barrels of oil equivalent, the African continent collectively holds around 10 per cent of the world's hydrocarbon reserves.
"It is Africa's responsibility to exploit its oil and gas resources for the benefit of the citizens, business communities and governments of the respective countries.
"On behalf of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, I would like to express my deep gratitude to all the distinguished delegates who have come from different countries to join us here today.
"Your presence here is testament to our shared commitment to unlocking the potential of Africa's hydrocarbon resources," said Lokpobiri.
Similarly, the Secretary General of the African Petroleum Producers Organisation (APPO), Dr Omar Ibrahim, noted that Africa has been producing oil and gas for the past 100 years. He added that, despite the billions of dollars that the continent had earned from this sector, it was still dependent on foreign investment to carry out oil and gas projects in Africa.
"It is Africa's responsibility to exploit its oil and gas resources for the benefit of the citizens, business communities and governments of the respective countries.
"On behalf of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, I would like to express my deep gratitude to all the distinguished delegates who have come from different countries to join us here today.
"Your presence here is testament to our shared commitment to unlocking the potential of Africa's hydrocarbon resources," said Lokpobiri.
Similarly, the Secretary General of the African Petroleum Producers Organisation (APPO), Dr Omar Ibrahim, noted that Africa has been producing oil and gas for the past 100 years.
Ibrahim added that, despite the billions of dollars that the continent had earned from this sector, it was still dependent on foreign investment to carry out oil and gas projects in Africa.