Achieving a Healthy and Sustainable Environment in the Niger Delta

Overview

For decades, the Niger Delta, especially Ogoni land has suffered devastating environmental degradation due to oil exploration. In response to the UNEP Environmental Assessment Report, Centre LSD, with support from Cordaid, launched a sustained lobby and advocacy campaign to ensure the full implementation of the UNEP report recommendations.

The project, Achieving a Healthy and Sustainable Environment in the Niger Delta, aimed to restore environmental justice, rebuild trust among communities, and hold stakeholders accountable; from oil companies to government agencies.

Objectives

Investigate challenges hindering the implementation of the UNEP report and cleanup efforts.
Advocate to key stakeholders, including government, HYPREP, and oil companies for swift action.
Collaborate with the media to track, report, and amplify cleanup developments.
Mobilize community action and create platforms for dialogue and accountability.

Implementation Strategy

Centre LSD’s approach was grounded in high-impact advocacy, inclusive dialogues, media collaborations, and citizen mobilization.

Key Strategies Included:

Research & Documentation: Developed policy briefs, scorecards, and analytical reports.
Stakeholder Advocacy: Engaged government agencies, oil companies, and CSOs through meetings, submissions, and rallies.
Policy Dialogues: Organized forums where stakeholders, including the HYPREP Project Coordinator and Environment Ministry officials, committed to action.
Community Mobilization: Held town halls and press briefings to ensure communities were informed and involved.
Media Engagement: Trained journalists and formed Journalists Against Delay of Ogoni Cleanup (JADOC), a media taskforce now operating independently to hold power to account.
Annual National Summit on Ogoni Cleanup: In partnership with CISLAC, Centre LSD institutionalized an annual summit to spotlight progress, challenges, and commitments.

Key Achievements

Catalyzing Government Action

Centre LSD’s rallies and roadshows triggered high-level government response. After the 2018 rally, the Federal Executive Council discussed the Ogoni cleanup on the same day.
The Minister for Environment, alongside top officials, engaged directly with Centre LSD - granting access, responding to advocacy, and participating in summits for the first time in four years.

Media as a Force for Accountability

Through JADOC, the narrative on Ogoni cleanup moved from passive reportage to active media advocacy.
Journalists were trained to deeply understand the UNEP report and report factually, critically, and consistently.
JADOC independently publishes articles, features, and radio commentary across the country.

Stakeholder Convergence

Facilitated collaboration between strategic partners (SPs), leading to a unified position on environmental laws like the EIA Act (1992).
Presented joint advocacy positions at House Committee on Environment hearings.
Gained the trust of agencies like NOSDRA, which invited Centre LSD to submit position papers on key environmental amendments.

Community Ownership

Communities that once distrusted the process now see Centre LSD as an ally. Traditional rulers and community leaders have acknowledged the Centre’s pivotal role in bringing HYPREP to their localities.
Communities have shifted from resistance to active cooperation in the remediation process.

Holding HYPREP Accountable

Centre LSD's policy dialogues brought the HYPREP Coordinator to a CSO-led event for the first time. He pledged to take CSOs on a site visit and delivered.
Follow-up visits with media and civil society helped validate remediation progress and maintain public pressure.

Outcomes

Clean-up works commenced after years of delay, with contracts awarded and remediation at various stages in multiple polluted sites.
Government and oil companies engaged publicly and directly with CSOs and communities.
National policy discussions were influenced by the Centre LSD’s position papers and consistent advocacy.
Media and citizen engagement surged, making the cleanup a national conversation, not just a regional issue.
Communities now recognize their roles in supporting successful implementation, shifting from passive observers to partners.