Namibia is moving to back its upstream petroleum local content policy with legislation as government seeks to ensure commitments on jobs, skills transfer and local business participation translate into enforceable outcomes as the industry advances towards development.
Labour, Industrial Relations and Employment Creation Minister Filemon Wise Immanuel said the recently approved local content policy would need an appropriate legislative framework and effective implementation to ensure Namibians secure meaningful participation across the petroleum value chain.
Speaking at the Namibia Oil and Gas Conference (NOGC) 2026 in Windhoek, Immanuel said the country must establish the regulatory framework needed to convert petroleum investment into employment, enterprise development and skills.
He said every job created, skill transferred and technology introduced through the industry would require appropriate rules and institutional oversight.
“The question is not about whether Namibia will explore oil or whether Namibia has discovered oil, but it is more about whether Namibia is prepared to realise its natural resources. The exploration process of the discovered oil industry owes immediately whether an ordinary Namibian would realise a full dividend of this oil,” Immanuel said.
The push comes as Namibia prepares for a possible transition from offshore exploration to development and production, increasing pressure on government to establish clear rules governing how international oil companies and contractors incorporate Namibians into their operations and supply chains.
The local content framework targets employment, procurement, enterprise development, skills and technology transfer, as well as greater Namibian participation across the petroleum value chain.
Immanuel said Namibia would still require foreign specialists in areas where the country lacks technical expertise, but warned that imported skills should not become a permanent substitute for developing Namibians.
“The importation of these skills must not become a permanent substitute for local capacity. For local capacity, it must be an interim. It needs to be evaluated and monitored,” he said.
The minister said skills transfer should therefore form part of how foreign expertise is deployed, allowing Namibian workers to progressively acquire the capabilities required to take up specialised positions.
However, he cautioned that stronger local content requirements would also place pressure on Namibian companies and workers to meet the standards required by the international petroleum industry.
“The industry requires safety, the industry requires quality standards, the industry requires a case for miles, the industry requires insurance. The industry requires timely, consistent and professional. You must prepare yourself for that,” Immanuel said.
He said government’s objective is not simply to increase the number of Namibians working in petroleum, but to ensure employment created by the industry meets acceptable labour standards.
“Our developmental trajectory and path must have a human face. It must be about how do we ensure occupational health and safety of those that will be employed? Can they think that? It must be about, how do we ensure dignity of those that will be deployed in this industry? It must be about how do we ensure job security by this industry? And how do we ensure decent wages for those that will be employed in this industry?” he said.
As Namibia moves closer to potential petroleum development, the effectiveness of the local content framework is expected to become increasingly important in determining how much of the investment, employment and technical capacity generated by offshore projects remains in the domestic economy.
