Algerian Energy and Mining Minister Chakib Khelil spoke at a Nov. 8 breakfast in his honor at the Library on "The Newly Formed Energy Commission: Implications for the United States." Co-sponsored by the African and Middle Eastern Division of the Library and the Corporate Council on Africa, the program was made possible by the financial support of Anadarko Petroleum Corporation and Amerada Hess Corporation.
A view of Algiers, ca. 1899, from the Library's collections
Director of Area Studies Carolyn Brown welcomed the audience of energy experts, businessmen, congressional staff, academics, diplomats and media, and then turned the podium over to Stephen Hayes, president of the Corporate Council on Africa (CCA). He talked about the various programs CCA was sponsoring, including the Africa Summit in June, which will bring African heads of states, foreign ministers and others together with top business leaders in the United States to discuss the possibilities of investing in Africa.
Gregory Pensabene, vice president for government relations and public affairs of Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, introduced Minister Khelil and praised his achievements both at the World Bank (from 1980 to 1999) and, since 1999, as Algerian Minister of Energy and Mining, president of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and president of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC).
Khelil described the reforms that have taken place in the economic and political spheres of Algeria since 1990. Speaking of the whole African continent, he noted that the idea of an African Energy Commission was an old one dating back to 1980, when African governments held an extraordinary economic summit in Lagos, Nigeria, and adopted the "Lagos Plan of Action." This plan included, among other things, a recommendation to establish an energy commission to address the energy needs of the continent.
After a series of meetings starting in the 1980s between the members of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) and various international bodies such as the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the African Development Bank, the World Energy Council and others, the African Energy Commission (AFREC) was set up at the 37th Summit Conference of OAU heads of state and government in Lusaka, Zambia, in July 2001. The commission now represents continental Africa—the countries of both North and Sub-Saharan Africa—and its aim is to protect, preserve, develop, exploit and market the oil and gas resources of Africa. AFREC works to ensure that the wealth generated by those natural resources is used effectively to help eradicate poverty, assist rural development and ensure industrialization and sustainable growth throughout the continent. Its purpose is also to promote cooperation and regional and sub-regional integration.
An energy data bank is one of the projects in which AFREC is now involved. AFREC has also identified a number of large inter-African energy projects such as the building of a trans-Sahara gas pipeline that would link Nigeria with Algeria, eliminate gas flaring in Nigeria and increase exports to Europe via Algeria's already existing pipelines. Another development project is the completion of a road from Nigeria to Algeria via Niger. This would enhance trade and regional integration in northwest Africa, and the increased revenues would permit the development of Niger's water and agriculture resources.
Khelil concluded by saying that these developments are important for the United States as well as Africa. He said that new sources of oil and natural gas have been discovered in Sao Taome and Equatorial Guinea that could make Africa an important energy partner for the United States in the near future. Furthermore, the development of these energy resources, as well as the plans for economic and infrastructural development, would require foreign investment and present new opportunities for American businesses.
