OLE NAIKO WINS LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

ABG’s Director of Government Relations, Mr Emmanuel Ole Naiko (left), receives the 2012 Lifetime Achievement Award for Outstanding Public Service from the chairman of the CEO Roundtable of Tanzania (CEOrt), Mr Ali Mufuruki.

ABG’s Director of Government Relations, Mr Emmanuel Ole Naiko (left), poses for a souvenir photograph with the Permanent Secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office, Mr. Peniel Lymo (centre), and the chairman of the CEO Roundtable of Tanzania (CEOrt), Mr Ali Mufuruki (right), at a ceremony in Dar es Salaam recently to present Mr Ole Naiko with the 2012 Lifetime Achievement Award for Outstanding Public Service.

ABG’s Director of Government Relations, Mr Emmanuel Ole Naiko (left), speaks to journalists shortly after receiving the 2012 Lifetime Achievement Award for Outstanding Public Service from the CEO Roundtable of Tanzania (CEOrt).

ABG’s Director of Government Relations, Mr Emmanuel Ole Naiko (left), chats with the Permanent Secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office, Mr. Peniel Lyimo (right), and other officials at a ceremony in Dar es Salaam recently to present Mr Ole Naiko with the 2012 Lifetime Achievement Award for Outstanding Public Service.

The former Executive Director of the Tanzania Investment Centre (TIC), Mr Emmanuel Ole Naiko, has won the inaugural “2012 Lifetime Achievement Award for Outstanding Public Service” for promoting private sector growth in the country.

The award was presented to Mr Ole Naiko on Nov. 26 by the CEO Roundtable of Tanzania (CEOrt), a policy dialogue forum established to foster close cooperation between the public and private sectors in Tanzania.

Presenting the award, the chairman of CEOrt, Mr Ali Mufuruki, said Mr Ole Naiko was recognised for his “impeccable record as a strong advocate of the private sector agenda” during his many years of public service in the country.

Mr Ole Naiko, who is now the Director of Government Relations at African Barrick Gold (ABG) after retiring from public service, served as investment promotion director and later as executive director of the TIC.

“Thanks in large part to your tireless efforts, many policies and regulations were put in place by our government that helped attract investments into Tanzania, both foreign and local,” said Mr Mufuruki when paying glowing tribute to Mr Ole Naiko for his distinguished public service.

On his part, Mr Ole Naiko thanked the CEO Roundtable of Tanzania for presenting him with the award that honours his distinguished public service.

“Regarding the valuable award that you have given me, I would like to say that I am forever grateful to my country for the many opportunities I have been given to serve my country. These opportunities were very unique and challenging,” he said.

Mr Ole Naiko noted that in the 1980s as a very young engineer, he was appointed general manager of the then state-run Buckreaf Gold Mine in Geita district.

“I supervised the operation of this mine from scratch to the extent that we were able to produce gold steadily and earn our country a lot of foreign exchange. Until I left Buckreaf in 1989, it was producing gold,” he said.

From managing a gold mine, Mr Ole Naiko joined the then Investment Promotion Centre (IPC), which was established by the government in 1990 and later transformed into the Tanzania Investment Centre (TIC).

He dismissed suggestions that former government officials signed bad contracts with private investors in the mining, oil and gas sectors.

“It is very common these days to hear people condemning past leaders of the mining and petroleum sector by accusing them that they exposed the country to bad agreements with investors,” he said.

“Such people are oblivious of the fact that before 1998, we did not have a single gold mine in production. It is only after that period Tanzania excelled into being one of the leading gold producers in Africa now producing between 30 to 50 metric tonnes per year.”

Mr Ole Naiko urged the private sector in the country and the CEO Roundtable of Tanzania (CEOrt) to work with the government to promote the growth of the middle class.

“Please do whatever it takes to help the government in its efforts to develop a middle class Tanzania … it is my expectation that with the knowledge and experience you have in business, you will help Tanzania to build a middle class economy,” he said.