Ugandan local companies are failing to qualify for contracts in the oil and gas sector due to lack of enough capital.
The chief executive officer for the Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC) Proscovia Nabbanja says local companies have failed to win contracts that are capital intensive because their capital is still low.
She says the government’s target is to ensure that 40% of the contracts are awarded to local companies. Nabbanja says most of the contracts which are capital-intensive will be awarded to foreign companies.
“We want to retain at least 40 percent of the contracts. Their capacity is tied to human resources and financing as well because if you’re going to be awarded a contract of two billion for instance, or one billion, it’s very difficult to get a Ugandan company that may have the capacity, for example, to contract a central processing facility for arguments sake,” she said.
The sector has so far created 13,000 jobs, and at the peak of the project, over 60,000 jobs will be created in Uganda.
She made the remarks while announcing the 90-day sensitization campaign aimed at urging the population to support the ongoing developments in the sector.
