Govt hails EACOP for training 170 Tanzanians

THE government has hailed the East African Crude Oil Pipeline Project (EACOP) for providing training to about 170 Tanzanians for a successful implementation of the much-awaited project that is due to start mid this year.

The pipeline covers 1,443kilometres from Kabaale, Hoima District in Uganda to the Chongoleani Peninsula near Tanga Port.

Speaking during the local employee skills enhancement training’s opening ceremony in Tanga Region on Wednesday, the Commissioner for Petrol and Gas from the Ministry of Energy and Minerals, Michael Mjinja, said that the local trainees will be an important resource in the implementation of various strategic projects implemented by the government under President Samia Suluhu Hassan.

He said some of the strategic projects in pipeline include the envisaged Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) to be executed in Lindi Region, among others.

He said the EACOP project is important in the development of the country as it will provide employment and technology transfers to locals.

“This project is of great benefit to the country where apart from the oil business, many jobs are created and local experts are being produced for implementation of other strategic projects,” he said.

He said that all the precautions have been taken to make sure that the project is environmentally friendly to protect the nature. He further said that the compensation to all people affected by the project is being done in line with applicable Tanzania laws.

According to EACOP’s Capacity Building Leader Martha Makoi, the implementation of the project requires each contractor to train locals who will, in the future, be useful for the country when foreign contractors complete their assignments.

A total of 170 Tanzanians are being subjected to training where 20 have already graduated with 25 others continuing with their training.

The training is being conducted by Sunmaker Development and Consulting (Tanzania) Limited with Veta Tanga and Arusha Technical College facilities  playing a key role.

The aim of the H3SE training is to prevent accidents that may occur in the project and endanger the safety of workers, as well as to ensure that the environment is preserved and protected.

One of the graduates, Sabrina Salim said that the training’s motto was ‘Safety First’, meaning that safety will be considered during the implementation of the EACOP project.

According to Martha Joash Makenge from Daqing Oilfield Construction Group Co. Limited, the main EACOP project contractors for Tank and Terminal Storage, the training was jointly provided in collaboration with the Vocational Education and Training Authority (Veta) and Arusha Technical College.