East African countries urged on regional oil and gas strategy



Participants at the oil and gas forum in Kampala have called upon governments in the East African region to combine efforts in the management of the newly found oil reserves. 

Experts from Sudan, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania argued that the region needs a collective oil and gas master plan to effectively utilize the resource to combine advantages and save costs.  
  
While opening the conference on Wednesday, Uganda’s Finance Minister Maria Kiwanuka said that Uganda was ready to corporate with others.

“I confirm that Uganda will be ready to incorporate a regional dimension to our petroleum strategy. Such a strategy calls for informed discussions based on research and evidence on how best to efficiently and effectively manage petroleum resources at the regional level,” she said. 

The participants noted that the exploitation of oil and gas in one East African country creates opportunities and problems that affect the entire region which can only be dealt with on the same scale. 

The participants also recommended a regional refinery strategy, combined infrastructural projects like roads, ports and railways among others. 

“A Regional approach is crucial to the effective management of resources especially as pertains to the issues of environmental management, infrastructure development (such as refineries and pipelines),” Mr Mwangi Kimenyi, director at the Africa Growth Initiative said.

“Cooperating on these aspects lowers the costs and is also more effective.” He added. 

Dr Sarah Ssewanyana, the executive director for the Economic Policy Research Centre said that there was need to think beyond geographical boundaries. 

Mr Paul Adong Bith, the Managing Director, Nile Petroleum in South Sudan warned that governments could end up with nothing if they compete against each other instead of working together. 

“If we start competing we end up with zero-sum gains. There are a lot of areas we can work together. Governments need to cooperate,” he said. 

Mr Elly Karuhanga, a legislator proposed that all East Africans should jointly own an oil refinery and also pursue joint projects in the sector. 

The minister for mineral development in Uganda Samson Lokeris however noted that  East African states under their community have been cooperating in the area of oil and gas exploitation for the last ten years.

 Already, the East African Community approved a regional refineries development strategy in 2008.
The minister also noted other areas in which regional cooperation has been ongoing. 

 “One of the most notable areas is the biennial East African Petroleum Conference which was first held in 2003,” Lokeris said. 

The aim of the conference is to attract investments in the sector by demonstrating to the world the potential that lies within the region.  

Due to expertise shortage in the various countries, the participants agreed that regional cooperation could help in sharing labour. 

The conference participants however noted that transparency and accountability was key for each country in oil and gas management. 

The conference is jointly sponsored by the Economic Policy Research Center in Uganda and the Africa Growth Institution at the Brookings Institution in Washington DC, USA.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Gambling with our Future? The Benefits and Costs of Legalised Gambling in Uganda

Gemma Ahaibwe  is a Research Analyst and  A nita Ntale is a Research Associate  at EPRC The overwhelming proliferation of lottery, casinos and sports betting in Uganda has seen the gambling industry develop in terms of penetration and revenue generation. Gambling related tax revenue has increased by about thirty-fold over the past decade, from UGX 0.24 billion in 2002/3 to UGX 7.4 billion in 2012/13. These revenues are set to increase even more with the introduction of a new 15% tax levied on winnings as per the 2014/2015 budget. As the government continues to search for more financing options for the national budget, the gaming industry is fast being recognised as one of the more underutilised potential tax bases. In contrast to the welcome revenue and taxes, gambling is also associated with undesirable socio-economic problems, which makes it particularly problematic for policy makers. Excessive gambling can result in financial family distress, and can be a trigger for other
Read more

The Urgent Need For Uganda To Pass and Implement The Fertilizer Policy

On 13 th of March, a number of stakeholders came together for a validation workshop. The workshop was regulatory impact assessment for the National Fertilizer policy for Uganda. As she opened the workshop, Dr. Sarah Ssewanyana, the executive director of EPRC revealed that there was need to increase fertilizer usage by small holder farmers in Uganda. Her comments were further enhanced by a Ministry official who said that “70% of the fertilizer imported into Uganda is used by large scale farms especially tea and sugarcane plantations.” It was Drake Rukundo’s presentation that called for an urgent need to pass and implement the fertilizer policy. In his submission, it was noted that out of the required 50kg/Ha/Annum, Uganda was adding only 1kg/Ha?Annum making the country one of the least in fertilizer use in the whole world. Rwanda farmers use 29kg/Ha/annum, Kenya 35kg/Ha/annum while South Africans were at 60kg/Ha/annum. To Rukundo, if government does nothing, there was a risk o
Read more

Mosquito nets do not eliminate malaria but save lives

By Ibrahim Kasirye Malaria as a leading killer disease in Uganda ahead of HIV/ AIDS. Uganda face over 10 million malaria cases annually and about 100,000 Ugandans lose their lives due to contracting malaria most of whom are children. It is responsible for 40% of all outpatients and 25% of all hospital admissions in health facilities. During the World Malaria Day celebration last week, the Speaker of the Parliament of Uganda Hon Rebecca Kadaga was quoted saying “ Mosquito nets are a waste of money ”. Although one may share the Speaker’s frustration that malaria remains a menace in Uganda whereas other tropical countries e.g. Cuba have managed to eliminate the malaria parasite, it is also worth appreciating the dilemma faced by public health officials and the environment within which they operate. At an estimated expenditure of US$ 150 million for 21 million   long lasting insecticide treated nets (LLINs) every 3 years (or about US$ 50 million per year), Uganda’s expenditures on
Read more