The Vice President, Paa Kwesi Amissah Arthur has said that it is imperative for government and other stakeholders to manage expectations that came with the exploration and production of oil in Ghana.
According to him, failure to adopt the best practices and experiences from other countries to meet the expectations of the wider society can result in the destabilization of the peace in the country.
[contextly_sidebar id=”FU9wuRiQCf8jnMIx03P9SY6rOta5mFza”]Speaking at the launch of the Western Region Coastal Foundation(WRCF) in Takoradi which is set up to a large extent facilitate a conducive environment for residents and investors in the six coastal districts, Mr. Amissah Arthur said “being a late comer in this industry, Ghana needs to adopt the best practices from the experience of other countries.”
“And it is this recognition that a proper governance of the petroleum sector and a good management of the resources will accelerate the transformation of our economy but this success will require that we moderate the huge expectations that have been generated with the commencement of petroleum production.”
He acknowledged that Ghanaians widely expected that the oil industry would bring positive economic, social and environmental impact particularly residents of the Jomoro, Ellembelle, Nzema East, Ahanta West, Sekondi Takoradi Metro and the Shama districts where the oil and gas activities are carried out.
“It is for this reason that the government is embarking on various social intervention programmes not only in the western region but throughout the country,” he stated.
Mr. Arthur also emphasized on the strategic contribution of the Western Region in terms of revenues it generates from the exploitation of its natural and mineral resources to Ghana and the need to give the region its fair share of development.
He said the peace and stability of the western region is pivotal towards the realization of the maximum benefit Ghana can derive from the oil boom.
He added that “the reason why we have to manage these expectations is that, Ghana’s [oil] production is very modest.”
“In terms of world production, we are an insignificant petroleum exporter and because we have built a huge expectations around it, we need a stable atmosphere to enable us maintain the consistency of our production at the optimal levels that we have, and that is why there is the need to maintain social stability in the Western Region particularly by eliminating the causes of conflict”.
The British High Commissioner to Ghana, Jon Benjamin whose UK government is providing financial support to the WRCF pledged to remain committed at “ensuring that the natural resource endowment of the western region and Ghana as a whole are used to strengthen Ghana’s development and to mitigate the risks and threats associated with extractives so that they don’t become the so-called curse or a source of major corruption seen sadly elsewhere in parts of this region, this continent and the wider world.”
–
By: Obrempong Yaw Ampofo/citifmonline.com/ghana