Ambassador Callan indicated that it's become a lot more competitive in Africa and, in addition to that, that we need to therefore more effectively use our resources to further our interests and our values.
High Commissioner Thornley built on that by saying that we should not just view Africa as a recipient of international aid, but also as a region that is willing to work with Canada on areas such as security and defence, and on issues such as two-way trade investments.
My question is in that framework.
Just last week, an Aframax tanker filled up with oil from the TMX pipeline—with 550,000 barrels of oil in a single tanker. It is the first shipment that is headed toward China. It's a shipment of 550,000 barrels.
I think it was Ambassador Diendéré who mentioned in his opening statement that this year Africa will be the second fastest-growing region after Asia this year. When I put all of that together, it seems to me that Africa has an immense need for oil and gas in the coming decade.
Currently, Africa is a net exporter of oil. It produces about seven million barrels of oil a day. It consumes about four million barrels. It has a net export of about three million barrels. If Africa is to catch up with the rest of the world economically, it seems to me that it would at least catch up to the developing world's standard, which is three times the oil consumption that it currently has. It only consumes about a third of the oil per capita compared to the developing world. That would mean that it would grow from about four million barrels of oil a day to 12 million barrels, thereby becoming a net energy importer.
My question for all three witnesses is, what discussions you have had about exporting Canadian energy, particularly oil and liquefied natural gas, to Africa?
What potential is there for that region of the world to be a destination for Canadian energy exports?