Namibia has called on international oil companies and major service providers to open their supply chains to local businesses as the country seeks to secure greater domestic participation in its emerging oil and gas sector.
Speaking at the inaugural National Upstream Oil and Gas Local Suppliers’ Workshop in Windhoek on Tuesday, Minister of Industries, Mines and Energy Modestus Amutse urged industry players to support Namibian firms through greater transparency in procurement, mentorship programmes and improved access to industry standards.
He said such measures would help local companies, particularly micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, position themselves for opportunities in the upstream petroleum value chain.
“Greater transparency and collaboration will enable local companies to better participate in the sector,” Amutse said, according to remarks delivered at the workshop.
The two-day event, organised by the Petroleum Training and Education Fund alongside partners, brings together government officials, industry representatives and entrepreneurs. It aims to strengthen local capacity through training, improved access to finance and a clearer understanding of tendering and compliance requirements.
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Namibia is seeking to integrate domestic firms into the oil and gas value chain at an early stage as offshore exploration and appraisal activities advance in the Orange Basin, where significant discoveries have positioned the country as one of the world’s emerging exploration hotspots.
Authorities say preparing local companies ahead of first oil production later this decade is essential to ensuring the sector delivers broad-based economic benefits, including job creation and industrial development.
Amutse stressed that building capacity before production begins is critical to avoiding a situation where foreign firms dominate the sector’s economic gains.
He also called on financial institutions to increase support for local companies, noting that limited access to capital remains a key constraint for firms seeking to enter the capital-intensive oil and gas industry.
Namibia’s offshore discoveries in recent years have attracted growing interest from international energy companies, which are expanding appraisal drilling and development planning activities in the country’s deepwater basins.
The government has repeatedly said it wants to ensure that oil wealth contributes to inclusive growth, with policies focused on local content development, skills transfer and supplier development.
Officials at the workshop said strengthening local participation in procurement and services could help build a more competitive domestic industrial base capable of supporting the energy sector over the long term.
The initiative reflects a broader trend across Africa, where governments are increasingly pushing for local content rules in extractive industries to maximise domestic value retention as new oil and gas projects come online.
