Niger Delta Human Development Report - UNDP Nigeria - United ...

support. The overall impact of the federal
and state environmental agencies in the
Niger Delta region remains quite feeble.
The sordid environmental condition
obviously reflects institutional failures,
compounded by market and policy failures.
In response to the persistent complaints of
people in the Niger Delta about the negative
impacts of oil production and the perceived
insensitivity of the oil companies and the
Federal Government, the Niger Delta
Environmental Survey was commissioned
in 1997. With funding from the Shell
Petroleum Development Company and
other companies, it carried out a
comprehensive survey of the Niger Delta
environment.
This was the most comprehensive and
results-oriented survey since the NEDECO
feat of the 1950s. Using the most modern
data-gathering and analysis technology, and
a large number of local and foreign experts,
the NDES has amassed, collated, classified
and mapped vital data and information on
various aspects of the Niger Delta
environment. Sadly, however, this report
has never been published, thus depriving
the public of a rich source of data that
could make major contributions to the
development of the region.
The NDDC Regional Master Plan
recognizes the importance of, and contains
recommendations for, managing the natural
environment and resources. Significantly, it
provides for ‘stakeholder participation’ in
key areas such as land, fisheries and forest
management; water supply; flood control;
waste management and public health.
CONCLUSION
This chapter has highlighted the devastation
of the Niger Delta environment as a result
of several decades of oil production, and
industrial and infrastructural developments.
Profound changes have often had adverse
effects on local livelihoods and social wellbeing.
For years, local people hoped for
protection that never came from successive
federal and state governments. Attempts to
fight back have at times compounded their
environmental challenges—the sabotage of
oil pipelines, for example, has only
exacerbated oil pollution.
The oil companies initially thought they
could ‘buy off ’ people from complaining
too loudly about the environmental and
socio-economic challenges they face. The
companies adopted the practice of paying
aggrieved local people whenever
complaints arose. But this simply
encouraged more and more people to come
forward and make claims. The practice
undermined community spirit and
cohesion, and soon factions and divisions
emerged within the different communities.
Youth and other pressure groups formed
with the sole purpose of seeking their own
share of the oil money. Traditional rulers
and elders lost face because of a lack of
transparency and accountability in the
collection and disbursement of
compensation for the loss of or damage to
land, fishing grounds and other property.
Today, the deplorable human development
situation in the Niger Delta is further
aggravated by growing violence and
increasingly acute insecurity.
People’s demands for substantial
investments in infrastructure and industrial
development in the region are quite
legitimate and worth pursuing. But
environmental sustainability must be
factored in. The level of infrastructure and
industrial development demanded can
hardly be sustained by the fragile
ecosystems in the core Niger Delta,
particularly in the unique mangrove swamp
zone. It will be necessary to learn from other
countries how to achieve a judicious balance
between development, and ecosystem
protection and preservation. The oilproducing
areas of the Mississippi River
Delta in the United States provide a good
example of how to minimize the
environmental impact of oil production
activities on the mangrove ecosystem.
92 NIGER DELTA HUMAN DEVELOPMENT REPORT