The Business of Upliftment
Chinese oil giant CNOOC’S wide-ranging corporate social responsibility agenda in Uganda helps develop youth
Stella Twine, 27, a medical doctor working in the west Uganda’s Kyegegwa District, credits much of her success to the role played by China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC) Uganda Ltd. “If it were not for CNOOC Uganda granting me a scholarship, I would not have become a medical doctor. I hail from a poor family which could not pay for my higher education. CNOOC Uganda paid for it and now I am a medical doctor,” said Twine.
She is not alone. A great many others have also benefited from the generosity of CNOOC Uganda, attaining various levels of education and qualifying in a range of fields.
CNOOC Uganda is one of the largest oil and gas companies in Uganda’s energy sector and owns onethird of exploration areas (EA) in west Uganda where it manages several oil blocks. The blocks are located in the Lake Albert Rift Basin, one of the most promising basins for oil and gas resources in Africa.
In 2016, development and production licenses for eight oil fields in the EA1 and EA2 blocks were issued by the government. In 2017, the front-end engineering design (FEED) of the blocks was initiated; the intergovernmental agreement for an oil pipeline was signed and the FEED was completed.
According to Uganda’s The Independent, on February 1, Totalenergies SE and CNOOC announced they are ready to produce oil in Uganda in a $10-billion project. It has taken 15 years of negotiations and the project will now enter the construction phase. Actual oil production is expected to begin in 2025. Ruth Nankabirwa, Uganda’s Minister of Energy and Mineral Development, said at the announcement that close to 75 percent of employees in the oil companies are Ugandans; 27 percent of them are in management positions while 64 percent of those employed in technical fields are Ugandans. Almost all lower rank personnel are Ugandans, she said.
Corporate responsibilities
CNOOC Uganda’s implementation of its corporate social responsibilities are vast and varied and include supporting farmers, building roads, houses and hospitals, helping disadvantaged children go to school and building refineries to help the country increase its oil processing capacity.
“We have been implementing corporate social responsibility projects in the fields of education, health, and sports, which have contributed to the social well-being of communities in Uganda,” said CNOOC Uganda Public Relations Manager Aminah Bukenya.
Philip Abahe, a local civic leader in Bunyoro where CNOOC Uganda operates, said, “Apart from supporting education, CNOOC Uganda also sponsors many other activities in our area and the country at large. It supports local people in health, entertainment and other social activities.”
He said CNOOC Uganda supports a local football tournament called the Amasaza Tournament. “It is a very popular football tournament in Bunyoro and attracts many football teams,” he said, adding that apart from the youthful players, many spectators flock to football grounds to watch the matches between different clans.
As mentioned, a big focus of CNOOC Uganda’s efforts is geared toward enhancing educational opportunities for Ugandan youth. The company’s scholarship programs for students in elementary and high school form a big part of their education drive. According to Hoima District Councilor Andrew Abwoli, since 2012, CNOOC Uganda has implemented the annual Best Performers Awards for primary leaving examinations, as well as for Uganda certificate of education and Uganda advanced certificate of education in the District of Hoima.
Aiding development
Speaking at one of the recent student prize-giving ceremonies, Wei Chai, head of Corporate Affairs of CNOOC Uganda, said that awarding the students with prize money and certificates is a move to motivate and indirectly improve their study performance. “Hoima District is currently experiencing rapid development, and CNOOC Uganda believes that the better the youth are prepared and the education sector transformed, the more the residents can benefit from the industry.”
Health services have not been overlooked on the social responsibility radar. According to a CNOOC Uganda statement, several free medical clinics for local communities have been established since 2015, when there was a cholera outbreak in Hoima District. CNOOC Uganda stepped up and provided funding for the community to buy medicine for residents.
CNOOC also sponsors youths to acquire knowledge and skills at Sunmaker Oil & Gas Training Institute, which contributes to the future of the country’s youth. It is a training institute based in Uganda’s capital Kampala,
CNOOC Uganda requires that all its contractors give priority of employment and procurement of goods and services to locals and only source from other places when they are not readily available locally.
AMINAH BUKENYA Public Relations Manager of CNOOC Uganda
founded in 2017 by four Chinese academics, Lyu Jian, Ma Bo, Duan Xiaofei and Gong Zhiwu.
According to the institute’s Labor Officer Stanley Mwebe, since 2017, Sunmaker Oil & Gas Training Institute has trained 2,500 young people in various oil and gas-related skills. “It trains youths in vocational activities, offering training in oil and gas industry-related skills, safety, theory and management.”
Among those who have benefited from CNOOC Uganda sponsorship at the institute is John Akiki, 27, who was trained in welding. After qualifying he opened his own now successful workshop and currently employs seven young people.
Bukenya told Chinafrica, “Through a partnership with Stanbic Business Incubator Ltd., we support local farming communities to improve the quality and aggregate of their produce, so as to supply the oil and gas sector and also export any surplus.”
She said that they also provide employment to local people. “CNOOC Uganda requires that all its contractors give priority of employment and procurement of goods and services to locals and only source from other places when they are not readily available locally.”
Bukenya said the company has strategic partnership with local institutions, agencies and associations to support national content initiatives. Among them are Stanbic Business Incubator Ltd., Uganda Manufacturers Association and the Hoima Farmers Association.
Looking ahead, CNOOC Uganda has initiatives in place to use the local FM radio stations and television to raise public awareness about the company’s programs and upcoming activities, which generates the participation of local communities.
Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni recently told people in Hoima that he was grateful for the generosity of CNOOC Uganda and how this is leading to the improvement of local livelihood.