KACHIKWU, WABOTE, INOYO, OTHERS SET FOR 3RD AFRICA OIL & GAS TALENT SUMMIT

              Minster of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu, Engr Simbi Wabote, Executive Secretary, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, NCDMB, and Mr. Udom Inoyo, Executive Vice Chairman, ExxonMobil, Nigeria, and several others are set for the 3rd Africa Oil & Gas Talent Summit in Lagos, Nigeria.

Mr. Emmanuel Emielu, Summit Director, AOGS 2018, who disclosed in a statement that the annual Pan African oil and gas event will take place in Lagos from 24-25 October, 2018, at the La 4-Points by Sheraton Hotel, added: "the event will be declared open by Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu."

He stated: “Dr. Kachikwu will be supported by senior industry leaders, including Wabote and Inoyo, adding that AOGS was created to be the meeting place where Africa’s oil and gas business and Human Resources leaders will share experiences and ideas on how to build and bridge the Human Capital needs of the Industry, and it is coming to Nigeria for the first time, after two successful outings in Ghana in 2015 and 2017.

The 2018 theme is People as the Real Assets: Delivering Innovation and Growth in the “New Normal” of Global Oil & Gas, adding that it underscores the critical role of work teams to deliver the innovation and resilience needed at this time, as the industry faces global uncertainties and chaos.

Speakers from Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Ghana, UAE and Canada are expected to present papers on the various sub-themes, with a Keynote by Funke Amobi, Country Head Human Capital StanbicIBTC Holdings Plc.

Some of the companies to be represented at AOGS2018 will  include, West Africa Pipeline Co Ltd, Ghana, NCDMB, DPR, NNPC, Oando, ExxonMobil, GE, Baker Hughes, Falcon Corporation, Ghana Technology University College, and the Institute of Petroleum Education and Management, Sierra Leone, to mention a few.

He added: “People must be seen as the real asset for charting the road to recovery. Of the three pillars of the industry – technology, finance, and people – it is only people that Africa has strategic control over, given that the other two are externally determined.”

Emielu also quoted Mr. Felix Amieyeofori, Executive Consultant, Operations, Pan Ocean/Newcross Group, as adding that: “This event is first of kind in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry. It is to provide the platform for engaging industry players on the need for investing in Human Capital that will sustain the growth in a competitive business environment. It’s key that very People Oriented Organization associates with this event, if they want to have sustainable business in disruptive environment that is constantly changing and evolving with new ideas. Our focus is Africa, given the teeming young population - the continent is branded as the youngest continent, with ever growing population, yet, extremely poor in all social dimensions.”

“Both China and India have explored and exploited their huge population into becoming global power house - China is the second economy after the US, while India is being forecasted to be third, over taking Japan and Germany, very soon. Why, because they invested in their people, and they are now reaping the dividends.  Our aim is to encourage organizations and countries on the continent to focus on their people and turn their labour force into Human Capital for sustainable growth.”