"“Africa is gaining importance as an oil-producing region. From 1990 to 2005, oil production rose from 6.5 to 9.3 million barrels per day, representing an increase from 9.9% to 11.2% of world production. The sustained high oil price in recent years has highlighted Africa’s potential as a supplier of oil, and the continent has become the focus of attention of some major oil importing countries, most notably China” says the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)." (Quoted from article)