General Conclusion

The exploration and exploitation of oil and gas resources in West Africa requires good public governance, i.e. that of the State as the Authority, owner of the resources, and good governance of public and private companies as an operational contractor. This governance provides a framework for all the measures, rules, decision-making, information, implementation and evaluation bodies that ensure the best functioning and the most adequate control of the execution of the activities of the hydrocarbon sector by the various actors. In other words, good risk management in the sector.

In addition to good governance, which implies the establishment of the legislative and institutional framework and transparency in the management of oil resources and rents, it is crucial today for West African States to meet the challenges of skills training and regional cooperation in industrialization in order to gradually take control of the management of their resources through the development of the entire hydrocarbon value chain with a view to satisfying local, sub-regional and continental consumption needs within the framework of the AfCFTA, an ambitious historic project of African integration.

Thus, political stability, the quality of governance and corruption are key factors for success in the oil sector. Their influence extends to all levels of the value chain, shaping investment decisions, operational performance and economic outcomes.

Countries that are able to create a stable political environment, implement strong governance frameworks, and effectively fight corruption are better placed to take full advantage of their oil resources. Conversely, failing to address these challenges can lead to lost opportunities, lower investment and socio-economic instability.

For policymakers, the priority must be to strengthen institutions, increase transparency and ensure accountability. For operators and investors, robust risk management and compliance strategies are essential. As the global energy landscape evolves, the importance of these factors will only grow.

The negotiation of oil contracts, the monitoring, control and inspection of oil operations (cardinal elements of the mastery of oil contracts that require skills) and a more ambitious participation of States in oil contracts at the level of countries in the West African sub-region with proven and proven potential, will make it possible to limit, or even eradicate, the predation of hydrocarbon resources by the CPIs.

The export of hydrocarbons produced from the West African or African subsoil in its raw form constitutes an immeasurable loss for the States of sub-Saharan Africa in the field of industrial and technological development, employment and skills training.

All in all, after more than half a century of exploitation of oil resources, West African states are still far from taking control of the oil industry. Most of the income derived from resources through poorly followed and poorly controlled contracts is not used by the population but continues to feed hotbeds of tension in marginalized communities, most of which do not have access to the minimum subsistence level (health, education, energy, housing). Some provisions of the contracts signed for the exploitation of resources are used to mortgage our oil resources for the benefit of international oil companies acting on behalf of the major foreign powers. “Africa in general remains a thirsty fish in the ocean.”

In view of all the above, the five (05) fundamental and indispensable levers on which West African States or African States in general must act for the development of an oil industry for the benefit of their population are:

1. the adoption and operationalization of an integrative regional policy and strategy for the development of all links in the oil industry, from upstream to downstream oil. This policy should take into account the precautionary measures to be taken in the short or medium term on the export by the States of the sub-region of crude oil, for which they have no control over the mechanism for setting the price of a barrel, and recommend the export as a priority of finished products or products with higher added value through the development of the entire hydrocarbon value and processing chain.

2. The appropriation of technology through the training of competent national executives in specialized fields throughout the oil and gas chain in order to have the capacities required to take charge of the management of oil operations from upstream to downstream

3. The creation of an African Development Bank in the extractive industries sector that will make it possible to finance national and especially regional projects in the hydrocarbon sector

4. the creation of a regional oil market. The sine qanun conditions for the operationalization of this market are based on the establishment of industrial infrastructures for the transformation of crude hydrocarbons into finished products, oil and gas storage and transport infrastructures in order to facilitate trade in the sector between African sub-regions and then between African countries. As such, it is urgent to set up cartel hubs of specialized companies in different regions of Africa for the production and processing of hydrocarbons, i.e. the development of the entire value chain of the hydrocarbon sector in order to put on the market crude oil derivatives and by-products with higher added value.

5. Good governance in the sector that drastically reduces corruption and the confiscation of income by a ruling minority creating endogenous or externally generated conflicts. In this regard, States must set up institutions with clear and separate roles to ensure transparency and good management of resources throughout the sector’s value chain.