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East Africa Oil and Gas Conference: Has it Gone Bust Before the Boom?

28 March 2017 9:00AM EDT

  • Conference

  • Ending 5:00PM EDT

Rome Auditorium
School of Advanced Studies, Johns Hopkins University
1619 Massachusetts Ave. NW
Washington, D.C.

You must RSVP to attend this event. A full schedule of the event is available here. The event will be webcast here. Tweet organizers questions and comments at #AfricaOilGas and @SAISAfrica. 


Recent discoveries of oil and gas across East Africa over the last decade have catapulted the region as the new frontier for hydrocarbons. Prospective extractive projects could spell billions of dollars in government revenue which, if managed responsibly, could finance much needed infrastructure, social services and ultimately transform the region. Yet since major discoveries in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Mozambique were announced, oil and gas prices have stagnated and the once-promising investments suddenly seemed doubtful.
Since Oxfam and Brookings hosted their multipanel event “East Africa’s Oil and Gas Boom - Promise and Peril” in March 2014, there have been significant political and economic changes both in the region and globally. Such changes warrant a critical analysis of their policy implications for the future of these East African countries.


This three-part event will focus on recent political and economic changes in East Africa and their implications on oil and gas development. By bringing together representatives from government, private sector, civil society, media and the international donor community, it seeks to review what progress has been achieved in the last few years and what governance challenges lay ahead.

The first panel will focus on the biggest constraints for East Africa to successfully utilize extractive industry revenues for broad-based economic growth. It will feature NRGI director of governance programs Alexandra Gillies, among other experts. 

Other confirmed speakers throughout the conference include:
  • Sandy Stash, vice president of safety, sustainability and external affairs, Tullow Oil
  • Dr. Alex Vines OBE, head of the africa programme, Chatham House
  • Adriano Nuvunga, executive director, Centro de Integridade Pública, Mozambique
  • Dr. Don Hubert, president, Resources for Development Consulting
  • Alexandra Gillies, director of governance programs, Natural Resource Governance Institute
  • Charles Wanguhu, coordinator, Kenya Civil Society Platform on Oil and Gas, Kenya
  • Amani Mhinda, executive director, HakiMadini, Tanzania
  • Winnie Ngabiirwe, executive director, Global Rights Alert, Uganda
  • Mary Warlick, acting special envoy for the Bureau of Energy Resources, U.S. State Department
  • Thomas Baunsgaard, deputy division chief, Fiscal Affairs Department, IMF
  • Lance Crist, global head of oil, gas & mining unit, IFC