. 4. however, this will only be possible if the government approaches the oil and gas sector and the green hydrogen initiatives in a national, rational, and strategic manner. we are fully aware that these sectors cannot only bring significant financial resources and enormous transformational opportunities but also come with challenges. there are many examples around the world where developing countries have obtained windfalls from oil and gas but eventually ended up poorer than before. we must avoid the resource curse at all costs. we must learn from the experiences of others. 5. in my message today, i would like to talk about the following three key issues ; first, how namibia should position itself to maximize its gains from these discoveries ; second, briefly reflect on some critical measures to be put in place to avoid resource mismanagement ; and finally, speak to the head - start we have made as a country through the establishment of the newly established sovereign wealth fund, the welwitschia fund. 6. regarding the gains maximization, i would like to highlight some critical success factors that the country should embrace to ensure benefits for all namibians. the question in the mind of every citizen is how as a country, we should expect to gain from these new discoveries. one of the most immediate ways should be through additional direct and indirect employment. exploration activities should also generate new infrastructures such as roads, railway lines, electricity supplies, schools, and hospitals that, although provided for the minerals industry and its workforce, can also benefit the rest of the population. it should contribute to developing skills and local businesses at the local level. skills development should entail using the migration policy to facilitate skills transfer and the acquisition of skills that are not locally available. meanwhile, the economy can be stimulated as mineral companies forge multiple outward linkages – backwards to industries that supply goods and services or forwards to industries that process mineral outputs. 7. the issue of ensuring optimal local content in the exploitation of resources must remain prominent. the finalisation and adoption of the local content policy is therefore of paramount importance. facilitating local content and participation in the oil and gas value chains has the potential to ensure broad - based benefits from these resources. to avoid and prevent the much dreaded " resource curse " that has plagued many developing countries with newly discovered natural resources, the private sector will need to capitalize on these opportunities. 8. this brings me to the second critical success factor, transparency and accountability in allocating resources. this would ensure that access to these resources is granted in

possible from the islamic banking experts in order to enhance your understanding of islamic banking. ladies and gentlemen, this workshop could not have come at a more opportune t ime than now, when the bank of uganda is in advanced stages of putting in place a supervisory and regulatory framework for islamic banking. since january 2016 when h. e the president of the republic of uganda assented to financial institutions ( amendment ) act, 2016, which embraced islamic banking, there has been tremendous work going on internally in the bank of uganda, which is mainly aimed at fast tracking the development of an enabling supervisory and regulatory framework for islamic banking. the consultant engaged by the bank of uganda prepared a draft islamic banking legislation, which is currently under review by the various stakeholders, whose feedback, shall be considered in finalizing the legislation. mission : to f oster price stability and a sound financial s ystem macroeconomic stability vision : to be a centre of excellence in upholding bank of uganda is aware that the banking sector and the general public are eagerly waiting for the rollout of islamic banking in uganda. i wish to assure you all that the bank of uganda is fast tracking the establishment of a supervisory a nd regulatory framework for islamic banking. all stakeholders shall be informed as soon as the requisite processes have been completed. i wish to reiterate that an effective supervisory and regulation framework is key to ensuring the success of islamic banking and bank of uganda is keen to achieving this objective. islamic banking has gained prominence internationally due to its exponential growth and resilience to financial crises as well as the nature of shari'ah - compliant finance models that focus on the principles of investment in real assets and risk - sharing. in the islamic banking model, each contract is backed by an underlying asset or investment activity which creates a direct link between financial markets and economic activity. the islamic finance model has thus contributed to the spread of real - asset - based finance principles in many jurisdictions and is regarded as an ideal option for the financing of infrastructure projects. this provides a condu cive environment for achieving a more integrated approach to economic growth. the success stories of islamic banking experienced in other jurisdictions would, without a doubt, be replicated in emerging markets like uganda once islamic banking is rolled out. i am happy to note that the agenda for this workshop covers the envisaged benefits of islamic banking, among other topics. in conclusion, i wish therefore to emphasize that while islamic banking and finance is envisaged to significantly