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Nigeria and the Republic of Congo are strengthening cooperation in the petroleum sector, with the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Sen. Heineken Lokpobiri, calling for deeper intra-African collaboration to enhance energy security, develop indigenous capacity and accelerate economic growth across the continent.
Lokpobiri made the call while hosting the Congolese Minister of Hydrocarbons, H.E. Stev Simplice Onanga, who led a delegation of the Government of the Republic of Congo to Nigeria to understudy the country’s local content framework and explore areas that could be adapted to strengthen Congo’s petroleum industry.
In a statement signed by Nneamaka Okafor, Special Adviser to the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Lokpobiri described the engagement as a practical demonstration of the benefits of African countries learning from one another and adapting successful experiences to their own national circumstances.
“Congo trying to learn from Nigeria is a welcome development, and it is one of the ways African countries can strengthen energy security on the continent when we learn from each other and leverage it to grow the continent’s capacity,” the Minister said.
According to him, Africa’s energy challenges require solutions that are grounded in the continent’s realities, with individual countries leveraging their experiences, technical expertise and resources for the collective advancement of Africa’s energy sector.
Lokpobiri highlighted Nigeria’s local content development initiatives as an example of how deliberate policies aimed at increasing indigenous participation can transform the petroleum industry.
He pointed to the expanding involvement of Nigerian companies across the upstream, midstream and downstream segments of the oil and gas value chain, noting that increased indigenous participation has also created opportunities for technology transfer, skills development and knowledge sharing.
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The Minister further stressed that the growing participation of Nigerian companies alongside international operators had facilitated the cross-pollination of ideas and created opportunities for Nigerian businesses and professionals to acquire expertise that can contribute to the wider development of the industry.
On his part, the Congolese Minister of Hydrocarbons underscored the importance of local content in ensuring that petroleum resources translate into broader economic opportunities for citizens and businesses.
He said the development of local enterprises, employment opportunities, training and skills transfer remained critical to ensuring that the exploitation of Congo’s petroleum resources delivers sustainable benefits to the wider economy.
Lokpobiri reaffirmed Nigeria’s willingness to share its experiences and lessons from the development of its local content framework with other African oil-producing countries.
He said stronger intra-African cooperation would enable countries to build indigenous capacity, retain greater value from their natural resources and strengthen collective energy security.
The engagement between the two countries underscores the growing emphasis on regional cooperation as African petroleum-producing nations seek to maximise their resources, deepen local participation and develop energy industries capable of supporting long-term economic growth.
