| 摘要 | 1. Research Purpose
At the present time, projects in Africa accounts for less than 5% in Korea's total overseas resource development projects. In addition, the import of oil and gas from the African region forms merely 2~3% of Korea's total oil and gas import. Korean government and energy companies now recognize the importance of the African region. They are currently expanding resource diplomacy and actively seeking resource development opportunities in the region. Nevertheless, it is indeed true that they face challenges due to insufficient information and lack of experience in Africa.
In Africa, major companies are already dominating resource development activities and Korean companies have pursued various entry strategies in order to overcome the disadvantage as a late comer. For instance, Korean companies sought for package deal strategy through which the construction of infrastructure and resource development are pursued at the same time. Nonetheless, developed countries criticize the countries which utilize official development assistance (ODA) as a measure to secure resources. Also, they impose direct and indirect pressure on African countries for receiving such type of aid. Among African countries, also exists fast-spreading disinclination to such strategies pursed by China for securing resources.
So, it is necessary to approach and combine more precisely the need for economic development of resource-rich African countries and the resource development projects in Africa of Korean energy companies. This research attempts to understand the accurate needs of resource-rich African countries by analyzing the process of economic development, their major economic policy (privatization, industrialization, employment) and energy governance, and combine the analysis outcomes in resource development projects of energy companies. Especially, the research focuses on major resource-rich nations in West Africa.
2. Summary
With the liberalization and opening of the economy, labor market in Africa gained flexibility since the 1990s. However, industrial development of African countries remained negligible and the manufacturing industry significantly was underdeveloped because of products imported from China and India. Government employment decreased as well due to the commercialization and privatization of the public sector. Also, the development of private sector was insignificant that high youth unemployment rate and vulnerable employment in informal sector have grown into a serious problem. Furthermore, economies of African oil producing countries, which merely concentrates on energy industry, resulted in jobless growth.
With rapidly increasing youth population, unemployment issue among the youth is definitely becoming one of the most important political agenda for the African governments. There is urgent need for education and vocational training programs to increase youth labor quality, to transfer the laborers, who are in vulnerable employment, to formal sector by developing non-energy industries, and to establish virtuous circle structure of economy by increasing effective demand. More importantly, strengthening of youth population with higher education increases total factor productivity and consequently lead into establishing the base for sustainable economic growth.
West African countries have heavily relied on energy resource development industries up to now. In fact, they have achieved positive outcome in terms of government revenue and strengthened economic growth rate owing from increased international price of natural resources since the 2000s. Nevertheless, the lack of transparency in oil development, collusion with government authority, and corruption have concentrated the profit from oil development/export to be beneficial for only a few people who have power, domestic energy companies and major foreign companies. Besides, oil development failed to accomplish ripple effect on re-investment in domestic industry and economic growth. In addition, energy governance issues, such as environmental destruction, conflict surrounding the profits sharing between the local government and the central government, and continued poverty of the indigenous population in the oil development area, have worked as causes of the unsuccessful industrialization and economic growth.
In order to accomplish mid- & long-term economic growth, African countries strive to lower dependency on resources industry and to foster strategic industries which can expand employment. Most African countries have selected strategic industries, such as agriculture, agricultural and fishery processing industry aimed at regional and international market and resource processing industry, as well as service industry. Industrial products made in Africa is not competible in the international market in comparison with Chinese and Indian products. Therefore, it is deemed more effective to revitalize the regional market and to establish regional production base. Especially in West Africa, the regional market should be revitalized by establishing various types of multilateral cooperation (economy and investment, trade, transportation, energy transportation network and so on).
Meanwhile, as we passed through the 2000s, which is represented with high oil price, measures such as reinforced government authority in resource development, expanded control of national companies, increased fees (tax and loyalty) for foreign resource development companies, strengthened environmental regulations and so on are observed in African oil producing countries, especially surrounding Nigeria. Nigerian government is promoting the revision of Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB). On the one hand, if PIB comes into effect, transparency will be attained in the bidding and licensing procedure. Also, independent national oil companies such as CNPC, KNOC can be provided with more opportunities to secure resources. That is, oil major companies are likely to sell or farm-out existing production blocks due to reduced profit, or they are expected to move on to developing off-shore blocks in which the companies can receive greater incentives and less government control.
Accordingly, forming multidimensional cooperations with African oil producing countries is observed as highly valuable. In recent years, foreign companies working on resource development in Africa have been receiving adverse reputations. Also, resource nationalism is quickly spreading in Africa. Thus, foreign companies seeking resource development should actively pursue corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities. Major companies are employing various types of CSR activities in many oil-producing countries. In addition, advanced countries, China and India are providing a large sum of development assistance to African countries. Korean companies are far behind in CSR programs in Africa, and development aid by the government leaves a lot to be desired in terms of quantity and duration.
3. Research Results and Policy Implication
Negotiation capacity can be increased by identifying what we can contribute to African resource-rich countries in industrializing and revitalizing the economy. That is, we should identify what Korean government and companies can provide in current issues, including energy governance improvement, short- and long-term economic growth strategy establishment, strengthening strategic industry which will accompany increase of employment, and diversifying industrial structure. In a companion perspective, we need to combine the resource development strategy with these resource diplomacy.
Specifically in the case of West Africa, while development potential is substantial in Nigeria, for now equity investment is practically the only option for Korean companies as a late comer. On the other hand, despite the presence of unexplored and undistributed deep-sea blocks in other oil-producing countries in west Africa, Korean companies have difficulty in participation due to high risk and cost structure. Therefore, it is deemed more effective to establish joint-ventures with foreign independent oil and natural gas E&P companies or Chinese and Brazilian national oil companies which have high level of technology and also fund mobilization.
Finally, poor CSR activities of Korean resource development companies in Africa is because they do not own profitable production block and because there are many limits to national resource development companies. In spite of the fact, considering the large needs of CSR activities for foreign companies in Africa, CSR activities should be expanded, regarding them as long-term investments. Also, distinct type of assistance that is different from international major oil companies should be sought for. In other words, while the major companies' CSR activities focus on general education and HIV/AIDS program in Africa, differentiated strategy for Korean companies can be more helpful to "select and concentrate" on human resource development, IT education and fostering agriculture and agricultural and fishery processing industry. |
