Local Content Laws and Gender Equality in Africa’s Oil and Gas Sector

Abstract

Historically, the oil and gas sector has played a significant role in the economic development. Beyond being an important source of energy for industrialisation and other development goals, revenue from oi and gas exports have provided much needed funding for critical sectors in resource rich countries. However, the benefits of oil and gas developments have not been equitably distributed. Local content laws were introduced by resource rich countries to maximise the benefits of resource extraction and production processes for the local population and businesses. Recognising that host communities bear an inordinate burden of the negative externalities associated resource exploitation, local content laws offer an opportunity for mitigating adverse impacts and maximising the wider benefits accruing from the energy sector at the local level. Though women are still often disproportionately impacted by the negative externalities from the oil and gas sector and excluded from employment and decision-making, most local content provisions do not sufficiently address the gender issues. This chapter explores the state of gender equality in Africa’s oil and gas sector and makes recommendations for strengthening women’s inclusion in the sector through local content laws provisions. The chapter also considers main legal approaches for mainstreaming gender equality in local content laws vis-à-vis the trends in the energy sector across the continent.