The month of July 2020 was indeed an eventful one on AAPG’s calendar, as various divisions and regions of our great Association underwent changes in leadership. The young professionals arm of AAPG Africa Region was not left behind, as the baton of leadership was passed to Philip Ajaebili, ably supported by AAPG Africa Region Program Manager Delia Kuye, AAPG Middle East and Africa Region Director Abeer Zubaidi and a team of dedicated YP representatives in several African countries to build on the great efforts of past leaders and YP representatives in the region.
Geared to make positive impacts as soon as possible – especially by leveraging technology during the global pandemic – the new YP representatives set up teams across several African countries to increase AAPG awareness and memberships across several African countries. Other objectives were to keep YPs updated on trends in the industry, enhance their knowledge and skills, and help them overcome the global challenges confronting our industry today. This was achieved through monthly webinars and other online sessions beginning from September 2020, such as the monthly LINK UP Webinar Series in which seasoned professionals share knowledge on relevant technical knowledge and leadership insights with YPs in the region.
The LINK UP series for September and October 2020 were anchored by NAPE President and Fellow of NAPE Nosa Omorodion and K.B. Trivedi, respectively, with more than 100 attendees each. Both were well received by the participants and followed by an interactive question-and-answer session that continued into an offline session. Some quotes from these sessions are listed below:
“Never let the fighter in you be killed by this pandemic/disruption. Many industries will be disrupted, but what we will see is the result of such disruption.”
Omorodion
“Do not be myopic to the model. The model is limited and may not help make informed decisions nor minimize risks and uncertainties. Appreciate the extent of the geology as you observe the model.”
Trivedi
Joint Efforts with NAPE
Additionally, the AAPG Africa Region YP has continued to leverage partnerships with the YP arm of the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists to jointly organize programs that benefit YPs locally. Together the associations organized the Exciting World of Geosciences initiative, aimed at exposing undergraduates and recent graduates to the wide spectrum of geosciences as applied in the petroleum industry. The virtual session held for one week with more than 1,000 registered participants, and a quiz competition was held at the end of the event. Overall, this was well received and various feedbacks were recorded on how to improve the next run. Kudos to NAPE-YP Lead Callistus Anaele and his team for putting together a very successful EWOG program.
During the last quarter, AAPG Africa Region YP has consolidated the YP population in key countries like Nigeria, Egypt and South Africa while adding two new countries – Angola and Ethiopia – to the fold. Plans are in place to strengthen existing chapters in Ghana, Uganda, Kenya and Algeria. The expectation is to end the year strong and plan for a more eventful 2021 with the experiences and lessons gained in 2020.
Africa has the youngest population in the world and it’s growing fast. According to the United Nations, the share of Africa’s youth in the world is projected to increase to 42 percent by 2030 and is expected to continue to grow throughout the remainder of the 21st century. Opportunities to meet the energy demands to serve this burgeoning population will continue to grow. Additionally, there is an increasing number of African countries becoming key players in the oil and gas industry to meet this demand. AAPG must continue to position itself as a professional organization to work in collaboration with relevant parallel national and regional geoscience bodies to harness the potentials of the talented and creative African youths.