Salma Usiku, is an exploration Geologist with Azinam, which is an Oil and gas exploration company, part of the Azinam group that is based in Windhoek, Namibia. She was honoured with the prestigious Global Women Petroleum & Energy Club Award for Excellence in Africa 2018, at the just concluded Future Energy Africa conference. This award is presented annually to an individual that is demonstrating excellence in Africa’s oil & gas sector and is a role model for young women looking to enter the industry.
In this exclusive interview with Majorwaves Energy Report’s Editor, Margaret Nongo-Okojokwu; Selma tells us about her journey to the top as a female geologist in a male dominated industry; how she rose up to the challenge, defying all odds to become outstanding in her field. Excerpts
MER: Congratulations on your award for Global Petroleum women award for 2018, that is huge feat for you, massive, so tell us what does it mean to you as person?
Selma: It is a recognition I wasn’t expecting, as I said in my speech this morning, it was a shock, because just listening to the title: Global Women Petroleum and Energy club award for in excellence in Africa, now the globe and Africa are really big places, too many talented women, I am like ‘where did they even find me?’, what have I done to deserve such an accolade, but at the same time, it is humbling because the little things I feel I am doing are creating a big impacts for others people who are watching, so it means, that my work is not in vain, it means that for everyone who was willing to give me an opportunity, that decision was not in vain, it means that everything that everyone who has invested in me and what I have invested in my own personal development was not in vain, someone is watching, someone is recognizing and now I have to use this platform that this award gives me to influence others, to recognize others, and help other recognize the power that they have and what they are doing.
MER: tell us a little bit about your career, your work as a career person, how have you developed to this stage where you are now, what are your challenges and your success story
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Selma: you know, I really feel like my story isn’t unique in many aspects but I will tell it to you anyway, you know when I was younger, I was a typical tom-boy, so my activities were not conventionally girly, I was a lover of nature in the outside and those things were sort of, you know, I was extremely interested in them, and growing up in a country like Namibia with so many wide open spaces that are untouched, we went out a lot and so I had a curious nature of a child, and when I went to school, the natural inclination for Geography and Science, Mathematics subjects, it was almost like process of elimination, I don’t really like numbers, I don’t know if I will be able to handle indoor office situation, so outdoor and science came naturally to me, and those were some of the reasons why I decided to pursue a Geology degree. I did my under graduate degree in South Africa, at Rhodes university in western Cape, specifically in Geology and Environmental Science, and after graduation and that was around 2009, and many people know that that was the period of the Economic downturn to remember, when I was graduating, hoping to get in to a job, easy because I am from Namibia, where are in a country where there are so many Mines, that could be picked up anyway, Mines were retrenching people, that was number one and they are asking for people with 10-15 years experience and I haven’t been in school for 5 – 10 years, obviously I was devastated, because my parents have spent a lot of money to get that tertiary education,
it was extremely expensive to send your children to a good tertiary institution, it didn’t stop me though, as you can tell, I like talking, because networking and talking to people is what I do naturally, so somewhere along the way, I met somebody who suggested that I do some television work, so I auditioned for a live TV show called Tupopyeni in my native language, means let’s talk and it’s really a show that addresses contemporary issues that face Namibians on a daily basis, from marriage to cancer, to employment, to single parenting, anything that bothers people on a daily basis, what we do is to invite professionals, invite people who are directly affected by such issues, we have a dialogue on such issues on national television, where people can debate, give advice, finally when the Brazilian Oil and gas company HRT, decided to enter the country 2012, they called for young Namibians with Geology qualifications, without experience or wasn’t a requirement and I applied for that job, so did hundreds maybe even thousands of other hopefuls and I was fortunate enough to be given an opportunity and I started with them, and I really must commend their approach to training and skills development because they took us through an intensive almost 24 months training program, and it didn’t just include technical skills because they know it wasn’t possible, it was literally impossible to find Namibians qualified in that field, because Namibia doesn’t have an active oil and gas sector, but they diversified the skills that we had, it wasn’t just about technical skills, we did Microsoft, we did public speaking, we did project management, we did everything and anything and they allowed us take part directly in the drilling activity, on the Seismic vessels, we were on the drilling rig and for a technical person like myself, that is the best way to learn and I think was the first major way that opened the first major door to where my career was going, because whenever I was unsure whether this was what I wanted to do or not, that was the deciding factor, because I felt so at home, at ocean in the middle of nowhere for 28 days, you know it was exciting for me? I thought I was going to get bored, but who gets bored on a drilling rig? That is when I said I like this and I understood that the passion was real, I could see that I could really go far, if I put in the work, of course there were challenges, being a male dominated field, being a woman, even in the classroom, when I was an undergraduate and a post graduate class, out of 30-40 people, you find 7 or 6 females, it really didn’t bother me then but when I think about it now, it somehow works on my psychology now, but it didn’t stop me from learning, unfortunately, HRT was not successful in its drilling campaigns, so they left and exited Namibia, but I was fortunate enough to meet the managing Director for Azinam who was visiting at the time, during a conference, when I was delivering a paper and research on the Positivity of offshore Namibia, my last final project for HRT before they closed, and David stood, he liked what I was talking about, he found that I am a young person that has the interest of Namibia at heart even as a young person, and I took his card and well my life changed again. Azinam as a young company that it is with such ambitious plans for Namibia and they saw that potential in me immediately, and I was more than willing to start all over again but before I started official employment with him, I decided to pursue a post graduate degree, to obviously improve my skills and move up a little more, and I had my Masters in Petroleum Geo-science, Royal Holloway University London, between 2015 and 2016. It was difficult because I had to leave my 5 year old son at home, it was a difficult decision at the time because it meant that I have to leave a full time employment, so all my savings was to go to ensuring that the person that I left behind at home was well taken care of, being so far away from home for an entire year, not even coming back, it was tough, but somehow because you understand the stakes and the end product will not leave you in the same place that you have left is somehow the motivation. My colleagues at Azinam supported me, my parents supported me, my great lecturers and my own great personal strength, I cannot accept defeat without trying, it is just not just something I can do easily and I knew so many people were counting on me. Many other personal challenges that I cant even talk about now, sometimes we let self doubt quit, I was never the best student, never top in the class or anything special, but I think that I owe to myself and other sacrifices that people have made for me to be here, now I am, the only female Geo-scientist in Azinam.; and I am only going further.
MER: I can feel that in your voice already.
Selma: yea, it’s being an exciting journey and I am glad about it.
MER: That is a brilliant thing you just said but I am wondering, if you don’t mind telling us how old you are?
Selma: I am 32 years old; I will be 33 years in March.
MER: That’s another big surprise. So at 32 you have achieved all these and even gunning for more? Tell us what it feels like as a young girl operating in this sector and having achieved all these?
Selma: it’s a humbling experience and it’s also motivating even for myself, it’s unbelievable because I know exactly where I come from, I know where women come from, because I have been privileged enough to be in that space where I have seen what was gone and what is ahead. I was born at a time where a Namibian girl child was just now way ever dream of the position that I am, because the environment will not allow them to pursue,
you have to prove that you earn your place in there, some might not say it, but you just have to prove it, that those subtle looks and comments shows that you have to prove that you have earned your place at the table and it’s tough, it’s really tough.
MER: How do you balance family life with all these work you are doing?
Selma: Well I love to say that I have got it all on lock down with balance in life, which is still something I struggle with.
MER: I remember you were talking about your child
Selma: As a single young mother, I have my son 7 year old Joshua, that’s challenging on its own already, so I am always stuck between nurturing enough and showing him, you know what, the women you will encounter in your future will even be better than I am, they will require from you a lot more than you see right now, and to go a little bit off topic, the thing is that the world has been focusing on world empowerment for very long time, but the thing is that they have left the girl child behind, the boy child is almost unable to deal with the independent woman, h will find in the future, in the past, they are able to use money and influence, or know you are the bread winner and so you can’t do that but I am also coming from my boardroom meeting, my money, so we are going to balance a lot of things, so its difficult, because of the way men are built, so being there, in a way and showing him that this is the kind of woman you will meet, this what the world is going to demand from the woman, you are going to meet, the world demands of your mother currently, still being nurturing is difficult, that I have really great support system, I am not expected to overly explain when something goes wrong, I understand that if emergency happen, because I am the only one, I understand that, not necessarily to be office bound, but duty bound, its ok if I have to attend to a sick child as long as I deliver, me being open enough to deliver, it is that understanding and open-mindedness that makes my job less stressful, I have great parents and great family, who will say don’t worry, you go offshore and we will take care of this and I can go away with peace of my, knowing that my precious cargo at home is fine, I am convinced to go with time, because you know what, I miss my job and I want to be there all the time, and I need to make my mark, its not easy and I cannot say that I have worked out the balance, I think what I try to do is not necessarily not only the best, work on being the best, but be present, when I am at work, I am at work, when I am at home, I am at home, there is no need to be perfect, it is just necessary to be present and I think that makes a big difference, my son does not feel neglected and my work does not feel neglected, when I am there, I am really there.
MER: you must be a super woman
Selma: I am trying.
MER: What do you have to say to young people who are looking up to you, especially those who want to achieve the same feat that you have achieved so far?
Salma: What I have to say is I get it and I understand, the things that you are going through right now, I have being there, having to struggle through basic things, not having the money, not having the support, not having the skills to get into the place you are trying to get to, its real, I don’t think anyone can belittle those struggles, there are brilliant people out there, even more brilliant than I am, its simply lack of opportunity, but the thing I have learnt here and I really like to stress this afternoon, is that waiting for opportunities to be availed to us isn’t always going to work, there comes a time where we have to create our own opportunities,.
Young people are finding it quite reluctant to do things for free now, they come out of the university and they get this job and all the benefits pronto! Be willing to freelance to do some things even if it is out of your comfort zone, because you don’t learn the lessons you learn from whatever things that you are doing now, you’ll need it later on, somebody might appreciate your work ethics, even if it is not what you studied, but your work ethics matters somewhere else, and don’t be afraid to adapt and change, some people have this mentality that ‘I was born to be a lawyer and that is it, when lawyer doesn’t work out does that means that my life is over? No!, Bee opened to working and working outside of your comfort zone because you don’t know, these lessons will benefit you in the future, don’t be afraid to let your voice be heard, because you are too young, you are too small, you don’t have enough experience, someone will hear what you are saying and please be confident and someone will hear eventually; don’t always wait, that someone will always give you opportunities, and don’t be afraid to take those opportunities yourself and most importantly, here I am, I am not just someone who says this is possible because they are already there, I am coming from where you are right now, here I am, I am not where I am supposed to be, but that hasn’t stopped me from doing the things that I am doing, and doing those things with the work ethic, with strength and willingness and whatever, I start with, I haven’t reached where I am supposed to be, I still haven’t reached where am want to be, and I am not leaving people behind, and sometimes I feel, especially in this modern world, it is such a ‘dog eat dog’ world, it is either me or you, they can’t take us both, lets leave that mentality behind, when I am going, I am taking my colleagues with me, I am taking the girl child with me, I am saying when I get this opportunity, let me show you what I have learnt, can I take somebody with me? Because I know that in the end, it will be a domino effect, someone has to talk to somebody, I am here because the opportunities were availed to me, and I want that for somebody else so if I am going, I am going with somebody with me and so we need more people with the same mentality, it’s the quickest way, young people for young people.