Ms. Irene. P. Bateebe is the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development. She has worked in the Ministry for fifteen (15) years in areas of Energy and Petroleum. She has handled the planning and development of infrastructure for the petroleum industry in Uganda including pipelines, the oil refinery and storage facilities. She has led negotiations for key agreements for the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) and Oil Refinery. Ms. Bateebe is a member of the Inaugural Board of Directors of the Uganda National Oil Company Limited (UNOC), where she is currently serving her second term. She also chairs the Board of Directors of the Uganda Refinery Holding Company Limited, a subsidiary of UNOC.
Ms. Bateebe possesses a BSc in Chemical and Process Engineering from the University of Dar es Salaam (Tanzania), a MSc in Advanced Chemical Engineering majoring in Refinery Design and Operations from the University of Manchester (UK) and MSc in Mechanical Engineering specializing in Sustainable Energy Engineering from the Royal Institute of Technology - KTH, (Sweden).
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H.E. DR. AZIZ MLIMA
High Commissioner at United Republic of Tanzania to Uganda
Ernest holds an MSc. in Petroleum Reservoir Geology from the Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine in London. He worked briefly with Scott Pickford Plc in the United Kingdom, before returning to Uganda to participate in field geological and geophysical data acquisition, as part of the petroleum exploration effort in the country.
Back in Uganda, he served in various capacities in the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development, including 6 years as Commissioner for the Petroleum Exploration and Production Department (PEPD) and for 2 years as the Director for Petroleum. Ernest is a member of the Government of Uganda team that promotes the country’s petroleum potential to industry, with a view to attract investment in the sector and also negotiate Production Sharing Agreements with oil companies, for acreage in Uganda’s Albertine Graben. He chaired the working group, which coordinated the formulation of a draft National Oil and Gas Policy for Uganda that was approved in 2008 and was a key participant in the formulation of Uganda’s petroleum laws, which were passed in 2013.
Ernest was appointed to lead the newly created Petroleum Authority of Uganda in September 2016, and was the 2019 Chairman of the Board of Society of Petroleum Engineers in Uganda. In addition, he is a member of the American Association of Petroleum Geologist (AAPG), the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) and the Geological Society of Uganda. In 2006, he was recognised by H.E the President of the Republic of Uganda for his contribution to the discovery of oil and was awarded the Nalubale Medal in 2016, in recognition of his contribution towards the development of Uganda’s oil and gas sector. Ernest is also a recipient of the 2007 Global Pacific Award for Distinguished Contribution to the African Oil and Gas Industry.
Tony Okao Otoa is the CEO of the Stanbic Business Incubator, which supports and nurtures Small and Medium-sized Enterprises to prepare them for business growth opportunities. His role is to design strategies, manage and implement activities and programs for Enterprise Development for the Stanbic Business Incubator. His work with the Incubator has helped the emerging entrepreneurs to gain access to networking, new markets, and financing opportunities and has impacted over 1000 SMES.
His expertise spans across the Oil and Gas sector, entrepreneurship, communication strategy and innovation in both Uganda and the United Kingdom. In the past, Tony had worked as a National Content Manager at Total Exploration and Production, where he also served as the Public Affairs Manager. Tony worked with civil society in the UK and Uganda to plan, develop and design laws and regulations for the oil and gas sector in the East African region. His untiring commitment and drive towards ensuring that Uganda becomes a formidable regional competitor in oil and gas has seen him speak around the world on the emerging sector. He has spoken passionately about participation of Ugandans in the sector, environment protection and robust revenue management.
Tony holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations and LLM in International Law. This experience has been a lightning bolt for him to reflect on and think of possible solutions to help young people, advise SMEs to be innovative and contribute to their growth.
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Patrick Ayota
Deputy Managing Director of National Social Security Fund (NSSF)
Patrick has been the Deputy Managing Director at Uganda’s national savings scheme, NSSF, since 2017. He was formerly the Fund’s Chief Finance Officer from 2011.
Patrick has extensive experience in Accounting and Finance Management, investment management and social security, gained over the years in various senior management roles across different markets including the USA. Prior to joining NSSF, he was the Finance Director at Barclays Bank (Uganda).
Patrick has an MBA from the University of South Carolina (USA) and a BSc. Finance from Liberty University, Virginia (USA).
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Eng. Charles Kwesiga
Executive Director of Uganda Industrial Research Institute (URI)