- DAILY NEWS Reporter
THE government should invest heavily in empowering small and medium enterprises to supply goods and services to the gas and oil sector as the best option to achieve inclusive growth in the lucrative industry.
Aberdeen City Council Director, Gordon
McIntosh, sharing the Scottish City experience in the industry, said the
government ought to help the small businesses to identify the available
opportunities as well as issue financial support in the form of grants
and loans.
He said Mtwara was a potential East and
Central Africa’s gas and oil hub, challenging the government however to
work closely with the private sector to realise the dream. “Central to
development is the planning process,” said Mr McIntosh, describing as
critical the structural planning for houses, industrial land and other
essential infrastructure for development.
Mr McIntosh, who boasts of 36 years of
work to develop the energy sector in the Aberdeen region, said the
Scottish city, by the time of discovery of gas and oil, had few local
active businesses, with everything brought to the North Eastern Scotland
by the oil companies.
“But, the council and chamber of
commerce wanted to increase the local content... and we wanted to get as
many as possible small enterprises in the oil sector,” he shared the
Scottish experience, which he said fits well with the Tanzanian
environment.
He however, warned against excessive
public expectations on the oil and gas industry, saying the sector
though influential in development was not the panacea to all the
problems. “Even in Aberdeen, there are still unemployment and poverty
problems.”
The oil sector also comes with some
social problems including prostitution, Mr McIntosh said at a
presentation he gave at the British High Commissioner’s residence in Dar
es Salaam. Ms Dianna Melrose, the British High Commissioner to
Tanzania, said there are many ways that the oil and gas industry can
help the local SMEs to grow.
She cited an example where she visited
Mtwara recently and found the gas company contemplating to import the
fencing fire from South Africa. The High Commissioner intervened and
local manufacturer was assisted to produce to the required
specifications.
“This is handsome deal that is going to
transform the local company,” said Ms Melrose, noting that the UK was
firmly committed to support Tanzania to exploit the gas and oil
resources for the benefits of all Tanzanians.
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