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

een largely limited to urban or peri-urban
areas, but are now being extended to more
rural localities. The reverse also takes
place—more agriculture activities are being
carried out in urban areas (Okali et al.
2001).
One of the coping mechanisms practiced
by some poorer households is the seasonal
migration of some members to urban areas
or other localities to earn cash. This
practice occurs quite extensively in the
South-South and South-East geo-political
zones (Olawoye et al, 2003; Okali et al,
2001). According to the focus group
discussions, a significant number of people
from the delta work as migrant cocoa
farmers in Cameroon, while others work
as artisans and cyclists. Participants pointed
out that the absence of reliable livelihoods
in the delta has forced many youths to
migrate to urban centres to make an
income. Apart from depleting the rural
assets for agriculture, this has been linked
to the spread of HIV in the region.
Social norms and local practices can also
be an important source of social capital.
While he was still the Deputy Governor
of Bayelsa State, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan,
who is now the Governor, wrote the
following account of his memories as a
child. He demonstrates the importance of
indigenous practices:
“In my community called Otuoke in Ogbia LGA
of Bayelsa State, the practice when I was a child
was for the community to stop fishing in the river
after the traditional festival in October. The river
is re-opened for fishing on the 23 rd or 24 th of
December and the catch per unit effort was usually
tremendous. The people, however, did not know
that what they were practicing was in line with
some aspects of fisheries management and
conservation. In the Niger Delta, most freshwater
fish spawn during the flood period when the water
level is very high, overflowing into the levees. This
period starts in September and reaches its peak
in October. Juvenile fish fill the whole river system
at this period. The closure of the river allows the
juvenile fish to grow to table size by December”
(Jonathan, 2004).
As with many local practices that are based
on traditional social beliefs, however,
modern religions and current ideologies
NIGER DELTA HUMAN DEVELOPMENT REPORT
have discarded these norms due to their
‘fetish’ undertones. Unfortunately, this has
led to the loss of sound practices. A similar
case is seen in the traditional preservation
of ‘shrine forests’, which has now been
discarded with the encroachment into the
forests and the resultant loss of
biodiversity. The significance of such social
capital should be understood not only
relative to traditional belief systems, but
also in terms of the potential benefits to
be derived. Good practices should be
retained, even though the reasons behind
them may be altered to reflect the need to
preserve the natural resources that local
livelihoods depend upon.
Infrastructure
Chapter one discussed the significance of
infrastructure for human development. It
is common to distinguish between three
types of infrastructure: physical (e.g., roads,
canals and bridges); social (e.g., health and
educational facilities, and public utilities);
and institutional (e.g., credit institutions and
postal services). Some experts define
infrastructure as the whole physical
framework within which all activity and
other forms of development take place.
It includes housing and buildings of all
kinds, roads and other forms of
transportation, communications, and water
and energy supplies.
The provision of infrastructure will be
critical to achieving sustainable livelihoods
in the Niger Delta. Accessibility is a major
livelihood issue, for example, given the
grossly inadequate options for transport in
the region. Roads are in a bad state, or
simply not passable. Some communities
have been practically cut off from the
mainstream of activities because of this
problem. They are unable to market their
produce, particularly fish products, and
often suffer high losses. Without health care
or educational facilities within their
communities, the local residents have
literally no means to improve their welfare
or income.
For some riverine communities, there are
two means of access to other parts of the
delta and beyond—by water (through the
rivers and creeks) or by road. In many
Modern ideologies have
encouraged some sound
traditional practices to
be discarded—this
tendency should be
reconsidered.
Sustainable livelihoods
depend on adequate
roads, electricity,
housing and basic social
services.
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