Accra, Jan. 25, GNA -Tullow Oil plc (Tullow) on Wednesday launched the Tullow Group Scholarship Scheme (TGSS) in partnership with the British Council to help develop local skills and expertise in the oil industry.

The scheme, which forms a key part of Tullow’s overall approach to education and capacity building, will support postgraduate degrees, technical training and vocational studies.

The scholarships aim to support local people to participate in the oil and gas industry, and in other sectors that promote economic diversification.

The scheme will address both existing industry skill gaps and national capacity development requirements and is aligned with Tullow’s aim of supporting long-term socio-economic growth in countries where it operates.

A pilot phase had already begun in September 2011 with 24 Ghanaians from the public sector pursuing Masters Level studies with leading universities in the United Kingdom.

Launching the scheme, Dr Joe Oteng-Adjei, Minister of Energy, said the scholarship scheme would give practical meaning to the country’s quest for indigenization of the work force in the oil and gas industry.

“The initiative is a welcomed bold step very much appreciated by government. There is no better way to develop Ghanaians to take over the commanding heights of the oil and gas sector than this approach which in the not too distant future will see our own people giving true meaning to local content in the industry,” he said.

The full Tullow Group Scholarship Scheme will have up to 110 scholarship awards this year allocated across the following countries Ghana, Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Gabon, Mauritania, Cote d’Ivoire, French Guiana and Bangladesh.

This year, fifty scholarship awards from the Tullow Group Scholarship Scheme are available to Ghanaians, who meet the set criteria through a competitive process.

Ten of the available scholarships would be set aside for scholars from the six coastal districts of the Western Region bordering the Jubilee Field.

“This is a huge investment in capacity building by any estimation,” Dr Oteng-Adjei said and urged beneficiaries of the scheme to return home after their training so as to create the opportunity for others to also benefit.

The scheme will be run through a partnership between Tullow and the British Council - an internationally recognised service provider in the area of scholarship management and partnership brokerage in higher education around the world.

Mr Aidan Heavey, CEO of Tullow Oil Plc, said: “This whole scheme is about developing potential – the potential that Tullow sees around it in Africa every day. Developing local talent for the oil industry makes good business sense for us, and it makes sense for oil producing countries to develop talent beyond oil.

This is a great opportunity for anyone who has thought about this and wants to make a real contribution to the future of their country.”