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Oando becomes first African Oil & Gas Company to be ISO 27001 Certified

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…as it Sponsors Young Professionals Forum in Partnership with SPE

 UGO AMADI

Oando PLC  has recorded a major milestone as the  first African Oil and Gas Company to receive the prestigious ISO 27001 Certification from Certification Partner Global FZ LLC.

The  ISO 27001 is the international standard outlining best practices for information security management systems.

Speaking at the certificate presentation ceremony, the Group Chief Corporate Services and Operations Officer, Oando, Mr. Zubairu Muntari said; “This is a significant achievement for Oando. By implementing and following the necessary steps to comply with this standard, we can identify, control, and eliminate security risks, ultimately validating the security practices adopted within the organization.

He noted  that OANDO is Nigeria’s leading indigenous energy group listed on both the Nigeria and Johannesburg Stock Exchange and the  certification also means that we are able to provide our stakeholders with a higher degree of confidence in the quality and stability of data security and further validating our commitment to the highest standards of information security.”

The Head of IT, Oando Group, Mr. Idris Musa, who directed the project attributed the success to the commitment by management towards managing business compliance and operational risks associated with the use of information systems and digital assets.

He said: “The investment in ISO 27001 enterprise security framework have allowed us structure and implement modern security controls in a complete and cohesive manner thereby strengthening our data and information system governance.”

Commenting on the certification, the Chief Operating Officer, Digital Encode Limited, Dr. Obadare Peter said; “Essentially, the certification aims to establish and put in place good information security practices across the Oando Group.

The certification is proof that the Company’s systems and processes have been audited against international best practice, positioning Oando as operating to global standards.”

It will be recalled that ISO 27001 certification is one of the most widely recognised and internationally accepted information security standards. ISO 27001 certification is the global standard for information security management system, part of the ISO/IEC 27000 family of standards published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the International Electro technical Commission (IEC) under the joint ISO and IEC subcommittee.

The certification specifies a management system that is intended to bring information security under management control and gives specific requirements. Organizations that meet the requirements may be certified by an accredited certification body following the successful completion of an audit.

In another development , Oando Plc  in partnership with the Society for Petroleum Engineers (SPE), will be sponsors of the forthcoming SPE Young Professional Forum (YP), themed; ‘Positioning Young Professionals for the Transitioning Future of the Oil and Gas Industry: The Way Ahead’. The event is set to hold at the Wings Office Complex, Ozumba Mbadiwe, Victoria Island, Lagos on March 7, 2020.

This is the second SPE event, this year, being sponsored by Oando, part of a long term strategy to support platforms of this nature in advancing and building a more robust sector via mentoring, knowledge sharing and networking.

Through the YP programme, Oando aims to support SPE in the development of young oil and gas professionals of 35 years and below to become tomorrow’s industry leaders; and to establish a resource base of qualified professionals from which the SPE can draw upon to strengthen the organization and industry.

Commenting on the partnership with SPE, Ademola Ogunbanjo, General Manager, Business Support Group, Oando Energy Resources, who will be speaking on the topic “Career Advancement’ at the event said; “The collaboration between SPE and Oando is pivotal to the creation of a knowledge based industry, one where technical expertise and know-how are freely exchanged across organizations through the leadership and coordination of the SPE.

At Oando, we constantly seek improved ways of working whilst still delivering value to all our stakeholders. Though we recognize that the oil and gas industry is an old and traditional one, we do not accept that traditional ways of operating must prevail over new thinking and innovation and this is what our partnership will achieve.”

The YP program is one of many avenues Oando is exploiting to build capacity in the industry. Against a backdrop of a shrinking employment market and rising number of graduates, the Company in 2019 decided to launch the Oando Graduate Accelerated Programme (O-GAP). O-GAP is a bi-annual scheme aimed at up scaling new graduates by giving them hands on experience and structured learning from some of the best minds the industry has to offer through an 18 month training programme. It is one of many ways that the Company believes as a private sector player it can strengthen the local oil and gas talent pipeline and in the medium to long term contribute positively to the economy..

In addition, the Company was selected by Strathmore University Law School, Nairobi, Kenya in

2019, as the preferred indigenous player for the academia to visit in its quest to acquire sector

knowledge to better equip the students as they enter the new and burgeoning Kenyan oil and gas sector.

 The university’s visit to Nigeria was precipitated on a need to take learnings from leading private and public sector players to enable improved success for Kenya. The selection of Oando was on the basis of its knowledge pool gained from operational experience across the full energy value chain, success stories of pioneering initiatives within the sector, a diverse and experienced workforce and finally its impact on both the local and African oil and gas industry.

 Commenting further, Ademola Ogunbanjo said; “To remain globally competitive, the onus lies

on the continent and indigenous industry leaders both in the oil and gas sector and other sectors

of the economy to collaborate for growth and innovation to move the continent forward. The hope

is that this trend of knowledge sharing and transfer will continue amongst African countries and

companies as part of local content development and capacity building.”

 

The SPE YP forum, aims to provide a forum to engage SPE members with less than 10 years’

experience, to allow them to stay active in the oil and gas industry and to bridge the gap between

students and professionals. To achieve this goal the SPE organizes and promotes technical

lunches, social networking events and career talks. SPE YP programs will aid the acquisition of

professional and soft skills, and provide networking opportunities for career advancement.

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