“Uganda is doing better than most people expect. Being able to deploy her oil resources and produce oil last also gives Uganda a chance to learn from the mistakes of others and build upon them. The country also has many qualified people, an excellent regulatory environment, and has established a very good working relationship with the investors in the country,” Mr NJ Ayuk, the executive chairman of African Energy Chamber opines.

I met him last month at the Youth in Energy conference. At once, his humility, which never leaves you thinking less of him, stood out.

The Cameroonian native established the first African law firm—Centurion Law Group—that is listed on the German stock exchange. Though a lawyer before an energy forerunner, his passion for energy drives his life. Immensely.

“Driving energy in Africa has become the work of my life because energy is crucial for Africa’s development,” he tells me on the fringes of the conference.

“I come from a small community in Cameroon where the electricity supply was often punctuated by blackouts. That is why I feel that those of us who have been privileged bear the solemn obligation to help our communities rather than simply chase the big salary and the job on the 25th floor. I would call that poverty in ambition because we have to lift our continent, leaving it better than we found it,” he adds.

• Read More