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

A common vision in the
delta imagines a region
flush with employment
opportunities. People’s
expectations about their
government, however,
fall short.
Achieving this vision requires a two-track
approach. First, priority projects and quick
interventions, including those that build
confidence in the possibilities ahead, should
be identified. Second, there is a need to
plan at a more strategic level and implement
long-term development programmes
that address fundamental structural and
infrastructural constraints on human development.
HUMAN DEVELOPMENT SCE-
NARIOS
Earlier chapters of this report analysed
the key development challenges of the
Niger Delta region. Some are based on
people’s perceptions; others are defined
by empirical data. The seven-point human
development agenda that follows derives
from three formulations:
(i) images of the future of the Niger
Delta described by people during the
field survey for this report (tables 6.3
to 6.8 in chapter six);
(ii) the scenarios identified in the NDDC
master plan; and
(iii) the scenarios identified by the stakeholders
at the consultative and validation
meetings held to prepare this report.
Evidence from the field study revealed a
common vision of the Niger Delta as a
region with abundant employment opportunities.
This underscores the importance
of jobs not only in poverty reduction, but
also in enabling people to live their lives
to the fullest while contributing to overall
development. As indicated in table 7.1,
about 22.2 per cent of the focus group
participants foresaw a Niger Delta that is
fully industrialized, which again reveals
people’s aspirations for productive employment
opportunities.
By contrast, people had comparatively low
expectations of their governments. The
ratings were low for good governance (8.9
per cent), adequate water supply (6.7 per
cent), and a secure and safe region (3.0
per cent). In the short term, this underscores
the need to kick-start the development
agenda with quick-win projects that
rejuvenate interest, loyalty and trust. The
medium and long-term phases would then
build upon a higher level of confidence
and commitment.
The following human development scenarios
formed the basis for stakeholders’
discussions, out of which the seven-point
development agenda emerged:
• a land with full employment opportunities
• a fully industrialized region
• a secure and safe region
• an environment first option
• a balanced and integrated human
development option
• a business as usual option
• an equity and social justice option
These scenarios are not necessarily mutually
exclusive. Apart from the ‘business
as usual’ option, the others are all different
dimensions of the human development
equation. The ‘balanced and integrated
human development’ scenario
probably comes closest to the human
development agenda in this report. All the
other scenarios are subsumed under this.
The seven points of the agenda below
capture the salient aspects.
The agenda emphasizes the involvement
and cooperation of all the stakeholders
in the Niger Delta. Opportunities for
forging partnerships for development are
highlighted. As an integrated package, the
agenda will take time, effort, goodwill and
consistency on the part of policy and
decision makers to produce tangible results.
The test of its successful launching
will be an easing of the tension, mutual
suspicion and recrimination in the area,
and the readiness of different stakeholders
to participate in advancing it.
A HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
AGENDA FOR THE NIGER
DELTA
PEACE AS THE FOUNDATION
More than any other agenda, the need
for peace in the Niger Delta is the one
likely to receive universal approval. Examination
of the various conflicts in the
region shows that competition for scarce
148 NIGER DELTA HUMAN DEVELOPMENT REPORT
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