The Petroleum Authority of Uganda (PAU) and CNOOC Uganda are pressing local suppliers in Hoima and the Bunyoro sub-region to strengthen their capacity ahead of the country's shift from oil and gas development to production. The two organisations said domestic companies must upgrade their systems, comply with industry rules and meet technical standards to secure supply contracts and ensure more spending stays within Uganda's economy.
During an engagement with local suppliers in Hoima, PAU Local Content Officer Christine Nakyonyi stressed the need for businesses to maintain proper records and register on the National Supplier Database, which enables companies to be identified for potential opportunities in the oil and gas industry. She encouraged firms to improve their readiness to bid for contracts and meet applicable local and international standards. The authority also recommended that local companies pursue joint ventures with larger domestic and international firms to strengthen their technical and financial capacity, saying such partnerships could help businesses gain experience, improve competitiveness and eventually undertake more complex contracts independently.
Percy Mucunguzi, National Content Officer at the Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC), said the engagements were intended to help local suppliers understand the sector's requirements, identify upcoming opportunities and learn how to position themselves to benefit. CNOOC Uganda National Content Manager Daniel Eric Jumba, who organised the engagement, said the transition to production would create different requirements from the development phase. He noted that continued engagements with suppliers had revealed improvements in compliance with regulations, service quality and production capacity, with some businesses responding better to the sector's growing demands.
Jumba said stronger local businesses could generate more employment and build capacity beyond the immediate oil production phase. "Our target is to support local companies. When local companies grow, the multiplier effect is bigger, and this leads to growth of the economy," he said. Bunyoro-Kitara Kingdom Chief Administrative Secretary Alex Katusabe welcomed the initiative, saying it would help residents and businesses understand available opportunities early enough to prepare competitive bids and that successful local companies could generate income and employment for households and communities across the region.