Uganda ? After years of exploration, oil has been discovered in western Uganda and the president said he expected production to begin in 2009.

President Yoweri Museveni said the country plans to build an oil refinery, with Uganda initially producing between 6,000 to 10,000 barrels a day.

Thomas Male, a Ministry of Energy official, told The Associated Press on Sunday that the three fields in western Uganda where the oil has been discovered have 100 million barrels to 300 million barrels of oil in reserve with 30 million barrels ready for extraction.

That figure would be low compared with other oil producing countries in Africa. By comparison, Chad produces about 170,000 barrels a day while Sudan produces several hundred thousand barrels a day.

Nigeria, Africa’s biggest oil producer, is currently producing more than 2.3 million barrels a day.