Norwegian assistance to oil-rich developing countries in 2016

Through the Oil for Development (OfD) programme, Norway shares its experience of developing a sustainable petroleum management regime with partner countries in the developing world.

Among the results of the programme’s activities in 2016, highlights include the establishment of new and updated petroleum laws and regulations, improved coordination among state actors on oil spill contingency and response, enhanced transparency on government oil revenues, and better environmental protection.

• In Ghana, a new petroleum legislation was adopted by the parliament.
• In Tanzania, a new regulatory body for the petroleum sector was established (The Petroleum Upstream Regulatory Authority).
• In Uganda, the draft of a new National Environment Act was completed.
• In Lebanon, a new communication strategy for the petroleum sector was prepared.

Read more about each of the examples above, as well as a number of other results, in the OfD Annual Report for 2016.

New agreement signed with the United Nations Environment Programme

Climate-related challenges pose serious threats – and bring about devastating consequences - for development opportunities in poor countries.

A central component of the OfD programme is to help partner countries mitigate the negative climatic and environmental consequences of petroleum extraction through trainings on efficient resource utilization and responsible environmental management.

After the adoption of the Paris Agreement in December 2015, climate issues have become even more important to address.

A key element in strengthening the environmental and climate initiatives in the OfD country programmes has been the establishment of a cooperation agreement between UN Environment and Norad. The agreement was signed in September 2016, and will provide OfD with access to UN Environment’s experts and global network of partners.

Countries in conflict

In 2016, several of the countries in the OfD portfolio were affected by conflict.

In South Sudan, the start of a new programme phase was put on hold. This was due to the precarious situation prevailing in the country as a result of an escalation of the existing military and political conflict.

Focus on transparency

In 2016, the OfD programme granted support to several academic institutions and NGOs.

In Angola, for example, Norwegian Church Aid’s local partner, CICA (the Angolan Council of Christian Churches), conducted monitoring of public projects in various municipalities throughout the country.

The results were presented at a national launch that was attended by members pf parliament, the press and representatives from the government. The event established an arena for discussion of the social problems associated with insufficient social programmes in a number of Angola’s provinces and put pressure on local authorities to take adequate measures to follow-up.