"The African petroleum industry is the fastest-growing in the world," South African Mineral and Energy Affairs Minister Lindiwe Hendricks told reporters ahead of the opening of the 18th World Petroleum Congress.

She said the meeting of some 4,000 key players in the oil industry would look at "how to ensure that our (Africa's) resources are exploited to the benefit of our people."

"In the near future, Africa will come to play a pivotal role" in petroleum production, Hendricks said.

The five-day gathering is a triennial affair bringing together oil executives, governments and concerned groups to take stock of challenges facing the oil and gas industry.

Hendricks said African leaders at the meeting would "seriously discuss the possibility of a Pan African exploration and production company. . . to see how we can have some control of the resources" to compete with major international oil companies.

"The proposal has been put on the agenda," she said without giving further details.

African oil-producing countries provide eight percent of all world oil output, with Nigeria leading the pack as the world's 12th largest oil producer.

About 85 percent of African oil is pumped out of Algeria, Angola, Egypt, Libya and Nigeria with Equatorial Guinea and Sao Tome and Principe cited as emerging oil players.

But despite the supposed wealth coming from oil, many African countries continue to grapple with crippling poverty.

Angola and Nigeria, for instance, rank in the bottom 20 on the United Nations human development index for 177 countries in 2005.

Angola's oil minister, Desiderio Costa, told reporters through a translator that Angola considered a continental oil exploration company as a "good idea" but added: "For now it's just ideas. We support the idea but we need to deeply discuss what this company is going to be."

Angola has recently come under scrutiny from the International Monetary Fund which found that 700 million dollars per year had gone missing over several years. Meanwhile Nigeria is trying to account for its oil earnings.

"The conference offers the continent a chance to seriously look at issues." including the " continuous poverty of oil-rich countries," said Ayanda Mjekula, chairman of the South African National Committee at the congress.

He said Africa needed to discuss corporate governance, transparency and the impact of HIV and AIDS as the continent tries to break into the international market.

"For the continent, it (the congress) is a renewed recognition of the leading role that Africa can play in the production of energy resources," a congress statement said.

The statement said delegates would debate the oil prices, global warming and climate change, solutions for affordable energy and sustainable alternative fuels. "Since the industry is also impacted by the scourge of HIV/AIDS, industry decision-makers and senior government officials will seek ways of improving management of the industry," it added.

The 62-nation World Petroleum Congress, founded in 1933 as a forum for international oil and gas issues, is being hosted for the first time on the African continent.

All rights reserved. � 2005 Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse.

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