Hargeysa, April 28, 2007 (SL Times) – A three day Petroleum Policy & Resource Management workshop seminar was organized and hosted by Somaliland Ministry of Water & Minerals and facilitated by Petrad, a Norwegian government foundation which facilitates sharing of knowledge and experience on Petroleum Management and Administration for governments and national oil companies. The workshop was held at Maansoor hotel, in Hargeysa from 16 – 19 April 2007.

The purpose of the seminar according to the seminar program was: ‘To develop an understanding and share views of conditions which must be created in order to implement efficient petroleum resource management in Somaliland’ and ‘To create a forum for discussions between Somalilanders and Norwegian experts within different issues of petroleum activities.’

The seminar chairperson was Mrs. Ellinor Melbye, who is the Somaliland Petrad project director. Speakers at the seminar were Mr. Trond Kubberud, Mr. Nils Raestad, Mr. Gunner Sjorgren and Ahmed I. Sultan, from Somaliland’s Ministry of Water & Minerals.

Among the petroleum seminar participants taking part in the three day workshop, which the Ministry of Water & Minerals invited, were heads of Somaliland’s government branches, lower and upper house parliamentarians, the local media, local civil societies and private petroleum companies locally registered in Somaliland.

The petroleum seminar was opened by Somaliland’s Minister of Water & Minerals, HE Qassim Sh. Yussuf Ibrahim who welcomed the seminar participants and the Norwegian facilitators and briefly gave his ministry’s mission statement on Somaliland’s petroleum potential and its commitment to develop and harness this potential.

Subjects covered in the first day of the petroleum seminar included:

On closing of the three day petroleum seminar, the Petrad project director Mrs. Ellinor Melbye gave an upbeat closing speech, whereby she said, “in all my experience and travel in more than 60 countries holding seminars and liaising with petroleum producing countries and their peoples, I have never seen such enthusiasm and interest in petroleum as I have seen during the last three days that we have been here in Somaliland. And this is a positive start to what we believe will be a beneficial commercial development for Somaliland and oil companies willing to invest in Somaliland’s petroleum potential.”

Mrs. Ellinor Melbye also, commended the Ministry of Water & Minerals for holding this type of seminar and said, “We commend HE Minister Qassim Sh. Yussuf Ibrahim and Mr Sultan, the director general of the ministry, for inviting a wide cross-section of the community to participate in this seminar. We do not often see governments encouraging and getting their public to engage on petroleum discussions and open forums like we have seen in Somaliland. This is very unusual and the first of its kind we have seen.”

Mr Qassim Sh. Yussuf Ibrahim, the minister of Water & Minerals in his closing speech on the petroleum seminar said, “It’s the first time a woman has headed a delegation to Somaliland and we hope to see more women coming to Somaliland leading delegations, with so many of their colleagues being men.”

The minister promised that his ministry will take on board many of the points and subject matters covered in the three day seminar and thanked all those who took part in the seminar, Petrad, the seminar facilitators and its speakers.

Source: Somaliland Times

Home | Contact us | Links | Archives