2022 ALCIF: Stakeholders Call for Robust Funding to Salvage Africa’s Oil & Gas Industry
- Stakeholders in Africa’s Oil and Gas industry gathered in Lagos on Monday, March 7 at the African Local Content Investment Forum
- The event had three technical sessions structured around eliciting discussions among stakeholders on the future of the oil and gas industry in the continent
- Experts agree that there was a need to develop a new business model for the development of the hydrocarbon sector in the continent
Lagos - Key players in Africa’s oil and gas industry have called for a more robust hydrocarbon development model that is anchored on seeking alternative funding plans, to salvage the continent’s energy sector, amidst energy transition realities and funding constraints.
The stakeholders gathered in Lagos on Monday, March 7 at the African Local Content Investment Forum (ALCIF), with the theme: ‘Evolving A Pan-African Strategy Towards Sustainable Funding of Africa Oil and Gas Projects.'
Source: Twitter
The ALCIF according to the organizers, is a follow-up discussion to the First African Local Content Roundtable held in June 2021 at the Towers of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) in Yenagoa, Bayelsa state.
The objective they said, is to kick-start the development of a framework for establishing a pool of funds for funding major oil and gas projects and further attract investors into the industry.
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Key speakers at the forum include the minister of state for petroleum resources, Chief Timipre Sylva represented by the permanent secretary of the ministry, Dr. Nasi Sani Gwarzo.
The minister provided quantitative analysis of the huge resource endowments in Africa which include an estimated 600 trillion standard cubic feet of gas and about 120 billion barrels of crude oil, which make Africa a hydrocarbon-rich province.
The convener of the forum and the executive secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Engr Simbi Wabote, expressed concerns that Africa’s hydrocarbon resources are fast becoming “endangered species.”
He said some global financial institutions and multinational project promoters are pulling out of hydrocarbon development projects, due to commitment to reduce carbon emissions.
He added that at country level, Nigeria represents a bright spot in the provision of funds that can be sourced for the execution of oil and gas projects.
He said such funds include a cumulative $500million intervention fund spread across the Nigerian Content Intervention Fund in partnership with the Bank of Industry, $100million capacity building, and women in oil and gas fund in partnership with NEXIM bank and $50million research fund to support research and innovation.
On his part, secretary-general of the African Petroleum Producers Organization, Dr. Omar Farouk, noted that Africa has come to the full realization that the parts of the world that it has depended on for years to develop its hydrocarbon resources are now moving away from fossil fuel development.
Niger Delta: Youths, stakeholders task state govts on human capacity building
Meanwhile, as part of conscious efforts to change the negative narrative of Nigeria’s oil-rich Niger Delta region, young professionals have tasked governors of the region to invest more in human capacity building and create purposeful opportunities for young people, especially entrepreneurs.
The initiative was set by stakeholders who gathered at the 2nd Niger Delta MSME Summit held on Saturday, February 19, in Asaba, Delta state, with the theme: 'Stimulating MSMEs Growth Towards Post Covid-19 Recovery.'
They advocated that governments of the region must move away from the political tradition of just signing and awarding contracts, to strategic empowerment and support for innovative creative minds in the region.
Source: Legit.ng
