Kenya could soon be listing oil as one of its natural resources for the first time. The country has never before been recognised for its mineral riches, but the recent discovery of oil in the north-western region of Turkana could change that.

The Kenyan president, Mwai Kibaki, is hailing this as a “major breakthrough” for the nation, which already boasts the largest economy in the East Africa region, owing to Kenya’s thriving tourism and business sectors.

The exploratory drilling firm responsible for the discovery of oil in Turkana is an Anglo-Irish company called Tullow Oil. To date, Tullow has also struck oil in Uganda, Kenya’s neighbour, and other African countries including Ghana and Sierra Leone.

Kenya will now embark on a programme to drill more wells in order to establish the oil’s commercial viability.

“It is… the beginning of a long journey to make our country an oil producer, which typically takes in excess of three years,” said Kibaki.

Nevertheless, this is exciting news for Africa and particularly East Africa where there are already plans in motion for the further exploration of the rift basins in Kenya and Ethiopia.

[Source: BBC]