Govt races to close oil and gas skills gap

Patience Makwele

The government has accelerated efforts to equip Namibians with technical skills needed for the country’s emerging oil and gas industry, warning that the sector’s employment opportunities could be lost to foreign workers if local capacity is not developed in time.

Presidential special advisor and head of the upstream petroleum unit in the office of the President, Kornelia Shilunga, said expanding vocational training programmes is critical to ensuring Namibians are ready to take up jobs expected to be created as oil and gas exploration progresses.