From Uche Usim, Abuja

Ministers of Petroleum in Africa converged on Abuja yesterday to brainstorm on ways of rescuing the continent from the pangs of energy poverty amidst abundant resources. 

The leaders, who met at the extraordinary session of the Council of Ministers of the African Petroleum Producers’ Association (APPA), also expressed worry over the dwindling fortunes of crude oil that has affected budgets and economic planning across member nations. 

Speaking at the programme, the Executive Secretary, APPA, Mahaman Laouna Gaya, said despite Africa’s abundant energy, it suffers from crippling energy deficit that stunts its growth. 

“Today, an African consumes on average 0.4 Ton Oil Equivalent (TOE), while the European consumes 4 TOE, the American, 8 TOE; the emerging countries 2-3 TOE and the world average being 1.6 TOE. The paradox must challenge us all because no economy can develop without this fundamental factor, which is modern energy. 

“Also, our economies cannot develop at such level of energy consumption. Today, biomass energy accounts for more than 60 per cent of the energy balances of our countries and you agree with me that we cannot develop any economy with wood energy, let alone talk about economic emergence,” he lamented. 

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Gaya, however, said that Africa, judging by its enormous energy potential and consumers’ market, could truly develop if fortified with the right political will. He also frowned at the western statistics on Africa’s oil and gas sector, saying it tends to devalue and underestimate its oil potential. 

“But with real African unity, Africa can be the first to see the second world’s largest hydrocarbon producer before Saudi Arabia, Russia and the United States of America. It is this unity and ambitions for Africa that we are looking for, and in view of the enormous delay of our countries in the development of hydrocarbons, the Ministers in charge of oil of the APPA member countries have decided on its revitalisation of this reform,” he said. Also speaking, Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, said APPA needs to be urgently remodelled to become a strong platform for regional economic integration.  He also said the time had come for African nations to pan their attention away from oil and develop alternative revenue generating sources. 

“In Nigeria, we want to develop various models. We need to decipher how to revenue from oil and gas resources to develop other cleaner and renewable energy sources and overall, develop our economy. We need oil revenue to get out of oil. We cannot keep relying heavily on oil going forward.

We need to factor the fact that oil is fading. In few decades from now, it will be the focus of the world. 

“So, we need to invest in technology, capacity and other areas needed to keep our economy buoyant. The oil price is low and unstable. It has affected budgets and planning,” he stated.