Oil and FID: Ker Kwaro Acholi calls for deliberate support to the Acholi Business Community
GULU – The Acholi Cultural Institution-Ker Kwaro Acholi wants the Government of Uganda and the stakeholders in the petroleum oil and gas sector to make a deliberate effort to empower the local business communities in the Acholi sub-region to benefit from the petroleum oil and gas sector.
In an exclusive interview with Ambrose Olaa, the Prime Minister of the Acholi Cultural Institution on Thursday afternoon noted that, the common Acholi business community members have very minimal understanding of the whole petroleum oil and gas opportunity.
Olaa says, stakeholders in the petroleum oil and gas sector need to do more engagement with the small and medium businesses in Acholi in order for them to tap this very important opportunity worth trillions of cash.
“Given the human incapacitation in the cognitive growth of the people of the Acholi in matters related to the petroleum oil and gas sector that is majorly as a result of the past 2-decade war, many people lack the basic skills and ideas on how they can benefit in this sector which is new altogether,” Olaa notes
According to Olaa, for one to benefit from the petroleum oil and gas sector, they must meet certain set requirements and standards that are highly demanding in terms of technical knowledge as well as economically.
Olaa further said, the only engagement that as the cultural institution they have been having with the stakeholders in the petroleum oil and gas sector is information sharing and not opportunity based.
In an investors’ forum organised by the Acholi Parliamentary Group held in Nwoya district last year, Didas Muhumuza, the Senior Stakeholders Management Officer revealed to the leaders from Acholi sub-region that very few businesses from the Acholi sub-region had registered in the petroleum portal.
Geoffrey Otim, a resident and a hotel and lodge proprietor in Anaka town Council in Nwoya district says, whereas the government and other stakeholders in the petroleum oil and gas sector have been rallying them to get registered to join the database, there’s no assurance that one will get the opportunity to be in business.
According to Otim, this has majorly been the reason why he and his other colleagues have been very reluctant to register and join the sector which is likely to be competitive and a selection process marred by favoritism.
Tony Awany, the Member of Parliament of Nwoya County in Nwoya district says, he has on several occasions engaged the government to loosen the conditions for picking up candidates for training in the areas which do not require too much technical and academic knowledge so that more people from the district can benefit.
What Should be done?
Olaa notes that the council of chiefs want the government and other players in the petroleum oil and gas sector to respect the fact that oil pots are in Acholi land even if they are in the national park.
“For the Acholi community to benefit from this petroleum deal, the government should acknowledge and give the identity of the petroleum to the Acholi. We want to see a protracted effort to build the capacity of the businesses from Acholi sub-region to benefit the petroleum project” Olaa proposes.
“We have welders within the entire sub-region, farmers, hotel and restaurant owners among others, can’t these categories of people be supported to meet the requirements and standards so that they can benefit from the petroleum oil and gas sector?” Olaa wonders.
According to Awany, who is also the Chairperson Land and Investments under the Acholi Parliamentary Group [APG], given the financial and technological disadvantage the Acholi community have especially when they are still recovering from the impact of the insurgency, and the fact that the major part of the oil being found in Acholi land, the stakeholders and government should have special considerations in the sector.
Our efforts to get a comment from Muhumuza on the demand by the leaders and locals were futile as his known telephone number went unanswered.
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