Senior Partner at Deloitte Africa, Joe Eshun, says it is time for Ghana to seize the opportunities in the oil and gas sector, industralise and push economic development to higher heights.

This call for proactive steps comes at a pivotal time where Ghana’s recent Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed with global energy giants Shell Holdings Limited, Chevron Sub-Saharan Africa Ventures Ltd. and GNPC Exploration and Production Limited to advance the exploration and production rights over the South Deepwater Tano Cape Three Points Block.

He disclosed this on the sidelines of the recent Africa Oil Week Energy Conference in Accra, following a plenary session he moderated, themed "Investing in Talent: Building Africa’s Energy Workforce".

According to the former Deloitte East Africa Chief Executive Officer, the move which signals an expansion of the nation's oil and gas footprint is a huge opportunity for the country to develop its workforce in the sector and create jobs for the youth.

"If today, the government signed an MoU with Shell and Chevron, that's a great opportunity for the country to actually quadruple our production of oil and gas and others in Ghana, right? So, I can see Ghana becoming a big oil and gas player in the next four to five years. It will be a very big force to reckon with. We will have a lot of access to energy locally produced by local leaders and local organisations in partnership, sometimes with international players, because it is important”.

“Sometimes, you need the deployment of capital and innovation. So that partnership is what I'm seeing, but I'm looking forward to the next five years of a country that has enough energy to power the industrialisation needs of the country. And most importantly, in the process to quadruple the number of jobs, because the dignity of our people for me matters most," he added.

He mentioned that such high-profile partnerships are set to unlock vast exploration prospects, which will inevitably demand a robust, highly skilled local workforce in the near future to sustain operations.

Mr. Eshun further highlighted the immense potential of leveraging these major investments to drive wider industrialisation and secure long-term economic independence.

Catalysing local capacity, he noted, is the definitive key to converting natural resources into nationwide prosperity and dignified employment.

He furthered that " because sometimes you need the deployment of capital and innovation. So that partnership is what I'm seeing. But I'm looking forward to the next five years of a country that has enough energy to to power the industrialisation need of this country, and most importantly, in the process to quadruple the number of jobs, because the dignity of our people for me matters most."

He underscored the urgent need for industry players to share insights with the academia in developing practical curricular which will actively bridge the gap between education and real-world opportunities.

​