Getting more out of the oil and gas sector: lessons from Angola and Chad

Several African countries have adopted Local Content frameworks as a mechanism to transform the short-term benefits of natural resource extraction into long term development - through institutional building and strategic policy tools to promote direct employment, skills development and the participation of local companies in the supply of goods and services in the oil and gas sector. In Chad and Angola, the establishment of Enterprise Centres has proven a particular success. These Centres impart business skills to citizens and local companies, and facilitate the exchange of information between buyers and suppliers, to help streamline supply chains in the oil and gas industry. They have enabled local small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to access financing opportunities to support investment in capacity building, and brought the SMEs into processes to participate in large oil and gas contracts (for which quality standards are high). Other African countries that are currently in the process of developing their own local content frameworks would benefit from establishing their own networking and training hubs to help empower their SMEs and citizens.