The Deputy Country Manager of Rhino Resources Namibia has called for youth involvement in the oil and gas sector to be encouraged without fostering a sense of entitlement from the industry.

Ndakolo Haiduwa was speaking during a master class at the Namibia Oil and Gas Conference in Windhoek. 

Haiduwa reiterated that oil and gas are indeed enablers for economic upliftment, and this can be achieved through equity participation, local employment, SME development, and finance. 

However, he said there is still a lot of work to be done to address obstacles in the supply of specialised local skills, goods, and services in the sector. 

"Given how broad the sector is, there is space for local SMEs to come along with other stakeholders and create a strong value chain; however, the question that begs to be asked is, how are we going to make sure that we do not see a repeat of opportunistic practices of the tenderpreneur era or another outbreak of the Dutch disease?"

Haiduwa therefore said it is imperative that today's youth are engaged and empowered with the know-how, technology and required tools to drive the industry forward. 

"It is for this reason that Rhino Resource is proud to be a strategic partner to the conference to help and identify some of these issues that may have found their way into the sector's boot as we embark on this long journey. Let us use this event to address these issues and have difficult conversations that might have a negative impact on the sector. Let's use the platform to be truly honest with ourselves and be innovative with solutions to help mitigate the challenges that would arise from conflict and unhealthy competition."

The local content and supplier masterclass is an interactive session for the industry stakeholders that focuses on practical strategies that align with the oil and gas opportunities through regulatory frameworks and capacity-building initiatives aimed at fostering a competitive and sustainable local supply chain. 

Rhino Resources is a privately owned exploration company which holds an offshore exploration licence, PEL85, in the Orange Basin, where it is undertaking a two-well drilling campaign.