FAVORABLE POLICIES FOR PETROLEUM SECTOR

GOVERNMENT TO CREATE FAVORABLE POLICIES FOR PETROLEUM SECTOR

The Government is committed in creating favorable policies and a regulatory framework that will enable critical infrastructural development for the petroleum subsector aimed at enhancing the competitiveness, efficiency, and transparency of the broader sector.

National Treasury and Economic Planning Cabinet Secretary Prof. Njuguna Ndung’u has said the Government’s input through the Kenya Pipeline Company, will improve the reliability of transportation and distribution of petroleum products to meet growing demand in Kenya and the region.

CS Prof. Ndung’u who made the remarks during the second quarter, 2023 petroleum industry briefing at a Nairobi Hotel, said the Government appreciates the sector’s contribution of over Kshs. 247 billion for the fiscal year 2021/2022 to the Consolidated Fund, and the significant role played by various stakeholders, particularly oil marketing companies, in the country’s economic transformation.

 He said the Petroleum Institute of East Africa (PIEA)’s members have been a key enabler of economic development in the country and the entire East Africa Community region through employment creation, contribution to tax revenues for the Government and supporting capacity building of upstream, midstream, and downstream activities within the region.

Prof. Ndung’u said the government will be keen to partners with PIEA to invest in the oil pipeline from Turkana to Lamu through a Public Private Partnership to facilitate private-sector-led administration and management of the project to benefit from the efficiencies provided by the private sector.

The CS underscored the importance of sustainable development saying, “Even as we marshal resources to make this industry grow. I encourage all players in the sector to incorporate environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations into their operations and business models”.

He called on PIEA members to partner with the Government in areas of climate change adaptation and mitigation while providing clean energy to support our Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BeTA), and mobilize foreign direct investments in upstream activities to exploit the existing oil and gas reserves within the country and tap into their immense benefits.

Themed; “Enabling Private Sector to Spur Wealth Creation”, the CS said the theme speaks directly to the Government’s Bottom-up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA) as well as Government’s efforts to put in place policies geared towards deepening Public Private Partnership for wealth creation and accelerate economic development in our great nation.