Business
UGANDA: GULU CITY AUTHORITY UP-BEAT WITH UNOC ENTRANCE IN ACHOLI SUB-REGION, ASKED TO INVEST IN HUMAN CAPITAL
Gulu City Mayor Alfred Okwonga is very optimistic to enjoy UNOC money come the year 2026.
“I would like to encourage UNOC to invest in this Acholi Sub-Region with business communities, this needs benchmarking with Gulu City Market vegetable vendors, the challenge we have in this Community Hall workshop cannot address business the vendor women’s issues’’.
‘’You need to extend your services by taking Gulu City women market vendors in benchmarking local content in other areas and it requires them more time to learn. They may not know because of the environmental differences, people communicate with their local language better than the usual western dialect, when you are coming here for this sensitization workshop also come with the sons and daughters from the soil.’’
GULU CITY-SEPTEMBER, 18, 2025
By Okumu Livingstone Langol
Gulu City Authorities were up-beat about Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC) positioning community suppliers to access Oil and Gas operation. At last after over two decades of bickering of uncoordinated activities of UNOC in Acholi Sub Region signs of fruition are showing.
Alfred Okwonga, Gulu City Mayor on Tuesday September 18, 2025 with other stakeholders embraced UNOC workshop in Gulu where all roads were leading to Bomah Hotel by people from all walks of life which included; market vendors, merchandisers, top civil servants, Acholi Community Leadership of both Local Government and academia. They stormed Bomah Hotel in their hundreds to listen to UNOC on what business opportunities were available as the Petroleum money will soon be coming in the year 2026.
Rosina Akello the Deputy Gulu City Town Clerk, opened the Pandora’s box when she mooted that it was a day in a long time that a workshop presented opportunities for Northern Ugandans to access the UNOC program. ‘’I am also aware that this opportunity has been taking place in Central Uganda, Kampala City and surrounding Districts. As Gulu City Authority I am very happy for the inclusiveness of the business community in the UNOC program’’. Arguing that such business opportunities most of the time concentrated in Central Districts of Uganda. She begged UNOC to invest in the improvement of road networks and health facilities since UNOC has opened a window and their door to the northern Uganda business community. She further advised participants to engage in fruitful meaningful businesses.
Alfred Okwonga, the Gulu City Mayor equally did not show restraint by reasoning that he took that moment of time to appreciate UNOC and individual guests who were present in the Gulu City Oktoberfest (from 6th to the 14th October. ‘’This meeting is very important for us. We have been officially sidelined by UNOC at the beginning of the oil exploration activities. But now UNOC is improving with community relations in the Acholi Sub-Region’’, he stated.
‘’I would also like to request UNOC to have a special interest for the business community from Northern Uganda’’. Revealing that UNOC has only 10 percent of their inputs in Northern Uganda. Hinting that our people are not in the same footing business opportunity with other parts of Uganda, especially where the Oil and Gas is in the Albertine region. He further mentioned that UNOC should consider a lot when they are organizing business sanitization with the business communities of Northern Uganda.
“If Gulu City Women Vendors need to talk to the local government they should use their local language. I would like to encourage UNOC to invest in this region with the service providers’ community. This needs benchmarking with vegetable vendors, because when you organize a community hall workshop, this vegetable marketers will not understand you, you cannot address their issues. You need to extend services by talking to them to learn benchmarking, that when you introduce local content, requires people to have more time with you UNOC.” Okwonga lamented.
Gulu City Mayor Okwonga teasingly said; ‘’I hear that Oil is coming next year 2026, I want to taste the Oil money, I would like to enjoy Uganda National Oil Company money’’.
The City Mayor also addressed the over 500 Acholi Community members gathering during the UNOC Bomah Hotel meeting, reassuring them that Gulu City Oktoberfest had just ended and it was a successful event. Arguing that the multi-cultural event brought over 300 foreign tourists who graced the Gulu City and the city is planning for a bigger one next year.
This event in Gulu City Festivity, all preparations went well, being kick started on October 6, with Gulu City Mayor’s run on the second day October 7th. October 8th there was the Acholi community presentation of their Socio-cultural norms, artefacts and over 70 varieties of local dishes. In October Acholi and other 24 Ugandan tribes presented their various dances at the Caribbean/Kaunda grounds. These included; the Bagisu, Iteso, Karamojong, Acholi Labwor, Alur, Madi, Lugbara, Banyoro, Baganda and many others.
The moderator from UNOC highlighted and agreed with the Gulu City Mayor, that indeed Oil money will be tasted, and this is why UNOC organized the workshop on community Sensitization in the first place.
The moderator then invited Richard Ojilong is a Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist from the Petroleum Authority of Uganda to explain to the stakeholders what it meant by organizing the UNOC workshop in Gulu City. Ojilong narrated that the Petroleum Authority regulated all the sectors which are under the ministry of Energy and Mineral Development. Their responsibility was for policy formulation but other sectors like UNOC had the responsibility for the business sector in oil and its products which is under the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development.
Ojilong outlined other activities being handled as; Ngassa shallow well and Ngassa deep well plays operated by Oranto petroleum Limited (OPL). Other business opportunities which are under UNOC are; Kanywataba contract area operated by Armor Energy Uganda Limited, and Turco contract area licensed to DGR Global Limited of Australia is already carrying out oil investments in Uganda before. There is also PEL works in the Kasura Bani area which is licensed to UNOC.
Richard Ojilong also outlined an oil key upstream project which has been done, that included Tilenga in Acholi Sub-Region. Tilenga is being operated by Total Energies which has three (3) rigs which currently has 148 wells drilled and an estimated investment cost of US $ 70 billion. Other Oil and Gas investment is the Kingfisher project operated by UNOOC Uganda limited. The project includes four (4) Oil fields and one (1) rig currently drilled so far. Kingfisher investment estimated cost is at US $2-2.5 billion.
Ojilong indicated the commercialization of the EACOP pipeline project of 1443 Km in length, 23-inch diameter from Homia in Uganda to Tanga in Tanzania, and said the estimated cost is US $ 5billion. So far, 120Kms have been welded in Tanzania.
The Uganda Refinery project has a planned capacity of 60,000 barrels/day with an estimated cost $ billion projects (including 211Kms multi-project pipeline). Ojilong argued that the government of Uganda is negotiating with Alpma MBM investment LLC of UAE to finance, design, develop and operate the Refinery (Liquefied petroleum Gas-LPG) projects taken forward along with the KFDA and Tilenga projects in which KFDA already has an issued license of operated US $ 7 billion. And we have Kingfisher project operated by UNOC Uganda Limited, the project includes 4 oil fields and 1 rig currently drilling 16 wells drilled so far, with estimated cost US $ 2-2.2 billion,
We also have commercialized the EACOP project 1443-kilometer-long, 24-inch diameter from Hoima Uganda where we have our Oil and Gas refinery and construct a pipe line to Tanga Tanzania. The estimated investment cost of US $ 4.5 billion, 120 kilometers have been welded in Tanzania.
The oil and Gas refinery project planned capacity 60,000bbl per day with estimated cost US $ 4 billion project includes 211 Kilometers multi protection pipe line. The government of Uganda is in negotiation with ALPA MBM investment CLC of UAE to finance, design, develop and operate the refinery.
Liquefied petroleum Gas (LPG) project taken forward along with the KFDA AND Tilenga Petroleum production project already issued license development workshop.
Ojilong later stressed and give the recommendation to enhance community participation in the area of increased on the formation of joint ventures and strategic partnership, outline that to support the formation and strengthening of suppliers collaboration financial institutions and suppliers through MOUs for working capital, credit and Banking establishment of sustainable business linkages within the petroleum suppliers chain to implement capacity building focused on financial literacy and competency.
UNOC management gave the opportunity to the stakeholders to ask them questions in regards to the sanitization workshop. Otim Denis from Insurance East Africa why UNOC is working only in Nwoya District, and also giving only scholarship study for Nwoya District, his second question, was there way UNOC can introduce Insurance Company to their workers?
Rwot Ociti Binyi, Rwot of Lamogi Pagak, who presented Acholi Paramount chief elect, Rwot Santo Richard Apire asked UNOC to explain why storages of Oil is being build in Kampala Jinja, and yet 80% of Uganda Oil and Gas research indicated that is found in Northern Uganda.
The second question Rwot Ociti Binyi asked, there is a belief that the current UNOC oil drilling was carried out vertically across River Nile, where Oil and Gas Pipe line was used to draw Oil and Gas from Northern Uganda to Bunyoro Sub Region.
Onono Dennis from Laminkica Initiative, asked the question why the government planned to construct pipeline through Tanga, port in Tanzania, instead of passing through Northern Uganda to Kenya Mombasa port the route which is nearer?. His second question, how many job opportunities were allocated to people in Northern Uganda?, to his understanding only 10% of job opportunities are people who have been employed.
What are the plans for UNOC on scholarship study for our people in Northern Uganda?, how many people from Northern Uganda work with UNOC?
