Kachikwu Re-elected President of African Oil Producers

Kachikwu Re-elected President of African Oil Producers

Chineme Okafor in Abuja

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, has been re-elected the President of African Petroleum Producers’ Organisation (APPO), an association of oil producers within the continent.

Kachikwu, according to a statement yesterday from the Deputy Director, Press in the ministry, Olujimi Oyetomi, will lead the association again until December 2019, in an effort to see him conclude the ongoing reforms and restructuring in the organisation that he started.

According to the statement, his re-election represents a historical moment for APPO considering that it is the first time a country and a minister would be allowed to lead it consecutively for three years in a period of five years.

It explained that the restructuring works Nigeria and Kachikwu started in APPO, were unanimously endorsed by all members of the Council of Ministers of the organisation.

The reelection, it added took place during the 36th Ordinary Session of the Council of Ministers of the APPO, which held in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea under the high patronage of Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, the President of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea.

According to it, the session had in attendance, APPO ministers drawn from 13 member countries; namely, Algeria, Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Congo, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Libya, Niger, and Nigeria.

In his validation speech, the statement said that Kachikwu, indicated his gratitude for the support he has received from the members of the council, and affirmed his commitment to making deep and sustained reforms that will not only guide its members to make the best returns in its energy business but also firmly reposition APPO as a global force.

It would be recalled that APPO recently announced its readiness to mobilise over $2 billion in financial resources to fund infrastructural collaboration in Africa in a lofty effort to develop the continent’s hydrocarbons sector.

This recent re-election, the statement noted will see Kachikwu complete the ongoing reforms that will emplace APPO towards leaving a lasting legacy for Africans to benefit from the continent’s hydrocarbon resources.

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