Africa must end foreign dependence, says Appo

Regional energy body pushes for new strategies to develop the continent’s resources

Africa has enormous hydrocarbon reserves and yet the majority of the continent’s population has only limited access to energy. Despite that disparity, critics in the West condemn new oil and gas projects in Africa in the name of the environment and the energy transition, even as European governments and IOCs look south with renewed interest, believing African resources can help ensure security of supply in the post-Ukraine invasion world. The African Petroleum Producers’ Organization (Appo), meanwhile, has its own pro-development agenda, emphasising a move away from dependence on the West. Appo secretary general Dr Omar Farouk Ibrahim spoke to Petroleum Economist about those plans and the wi