REPS CALLS FOR IMPROVED LOCAL HUMAN CAPACITY IN OIL, GAS SECTOR

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The House of Representatives has resolved to strengthen local human capacity in the oil and gas industry in order to address capital flight in the country.

Lawmaker, Thomas Ereyitomi, Chairman of the Committee on Petroleum Resources, Training Fund, said this at the inauguration of the committee in Abuja.

He said the House of Reps is also seeking to shore up the Gross Domestic Product of Nigeria, noting that the committee was committed to repositioning the manpower development drive, economic growth and diversification, fostering social development, and ensuring the global competitiveness of the country.

He noted that the committee remained one of the important committees of the Lower House as its task remained enormous.

“Our appointment to this committee is a demonstration of the seriousness the house leadership attaches to this committee,” the lawmaker said.

Ereyitomi said their mandate, as outlined in the standing orders of the house, was a testament to the committee’s pivotal role in shaping the nation’s future.

“To achieve these goals, I am pleased to present our committee’s comprehensive work plan for the tenure ahead.

“This plan is designed to guide our efforts, focusing on the key areas that will enable us to fulfill our mandate effectively,” he said.

Lawmaker, Amobi Ogah of the Labour Party for Abia State, said it was regrettable that not much had been done in training local players to boost the sector.

“The mandate of the Training Fund is meant for the training of capacity in the areas of oil and gas but today, we cannot really say that the agency has done much in training our people locally,” Ogah said.

According to him, today we are still hiring foreigners to rebuild or maintain our refineries, and one of the major reasons for setting up this agency is to develop our people.

He said the agency was saddled with the responsibility of developing people’s capacity and ability.

He added that this was to ensure that the country moved from over-dependence on foreigners in oil and gas to local level.