Niger Delta

Group Holds Interactive Forum On Ogoni Clean-Up

Published

7 years ago

March 4, 2019

A group under the auspices of Civil Society Coalition (CISOC) for environment sustainability in collaboration with Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) has declared its readiness to painstakingly monitor activities of the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) and to give them the necessary advice and assistance needed to facilitate the successful implementation of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) report in Ogoni cleanup exercise.
In a statement signed by the various heads of Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and made available to The Tide at the interactive forum on the way forward for the Ogoni cleanup, last Thursday, the CISOC chairman, Mr Young Kigbara, revealed that there were lots of evolving issues left unattended to by HYPREP as stipulated in the UNEP report before kick-starting the Ogoni cleanup exercise.
They stressed the issues such as the abandonment of the livelihood component, the unethically deferred idea of building the Integrated Contaminated Soil Management Centre or the On-site Mini Treatment Centre, failure to provide answer to where the contaminated soil or waste will be disposed, among others.
The groups berated HYPREP over its abandonment of one of the core mandates, the ‘livelihood component,’ and noted that there was great sense of urgency with the issue of livelihood as its obliterating value chain had among other things occasioned low school enrolment in Ogoni as women and men whose means of livelihood were destroyed, get poorer as well as despising the recommendation of UNEP in its Executive Summary that priority be given to the site where affected communities are at high risk and have instead handed over sites with low impact risk to contractors.
The statement further alleged that HYPREP against its claims had not created improved lasting-enabling environment to Ogoniland and Nigeria as a whole, pointing out that HYPREP activities had not been inclusive as most stakeholders in the communities feel excluded from the process, saying that could be responsible for the resort to violence by people suspected to be from Kegbara Dere Community in Gokana Local Government Area, an act which the coalition had condemned. The coalition called on HYPREP to immediately start the implementation of the livelihood component of the programme, as its key mandate and has the potency to forestall re-pollution of the environment, which is presently being carried out through illegal crude oil theft and artisanal refining of crude oil in Ogoni.

Susan Serekara-Nwikhana

Niger Delta

Stakeholders In Delta Seek Stronger GBV Action, Women’s Leadership

Published

1 day ago

March 2, 2026

The Tide

Stakeholders in Delta State convened in Asaba for a leadership workshop organised by Otdel Health Heritage and Environmental Initiative (OHHEI), focusing on Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and women’s participation in decision-making processes.

OHHEI Project Director, Mr. Peter Olayinka, represented by a consultant, Juliet Obiajulu, urged participants to contribute meaningfully toward advancing women’s leadership and combating GBV across communities in the state.

He said the workshop aimed to strengthen participants’ capacity to influence policies, challenge harmful cultural norms, and reinforce initiatives designed to prevent and respond to GBV.

Olayinka said women often faced bias even when they occupied leadership positions, and stressed that gender diversity improved the quality of decision-making and promoted innovation and accountability in governance structures.

Speaking, the Chairperson of the Association Against Child Sexual and Gender-Based Violence, Mr Eris Jewo-Ibi, identified cultural norms, domestic responsibilities, political resistance, and grassroots barriers as constraints to women’s participation.

Delta State GBV Desk Officer, Mrs. Rosemary Okpuno, emphasised that effective decision-making required women’s perspectives, adding that inclusion remained critical to addressing persistent gender-based challenges.

Voke Angbagh of the Delta State Ministry of Justice outlined penalties for rape and called for the establishment of special courts to handle sexual offences cases.

Angbagh said frequent adjournments delayed justice for survivors, stressing that dedicated sexual offences courts would ensure timely trials and stronger protection for victims in Delta State.

The Tide’s source reports that facilitators identified cultural acceptance of violence, unequal power relations, discrimination, poverty, limited education, and low self-esteem as major drivers of GBV.

They emphasised that violence and exclusion resulted in social, physical and emotional harm, imposed economic costs, reinforced harmful stereotypes, and widened existing gender inequalities.

The source also reports that OHHEI, a local non-profit organisation, focuses on education, health, environment, and social justice, promoting sustainable development initiatives with gender equality at the centre of its interventions.

Niger Delta

A’Ibom Assembly Urges More Private Investments In Agriculture

Published

1 day ago

March 2, 2026

The Tide

The Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly Committee on Nutrition and Food Security has called for more private sector investments in agriculture.

The Chairman of the Committee, Mr. Moses Essien, made the call when the committee visited Aviclaire Farms, a private establishment in Usung Idem, Uruk Usoh in Abak Local Government Area.

Essien, who represents Ibiono Ibom in the Assembly, commended the Management of the farm for partnering an NGO, ECEWS, to promote private investment in agriculture.

He commended the partners for adopting climate-smart agriculture initiatives in their operations, adding that such move would promote food security.

“Your interest in using transformative intervention to promote food security is a veritable way of complementing the efforts of the state government,” he said.

The lawmaker continued that adopting practical climate-smart agriculture model would help to generate employment, improve nutrition outcomes, and strengthen food sufficiency.

He further said he was impressed with the strides recorded by the partners, saying, “your investment has created jobs for no fewer than 2,000 youths.

”You are an example of an environment-friendly investor. I urge Akwa Ibom residents to embrace environment-friendly and technology-driven agriculture models,” he said.

Earlier, the Chief Executive Officer, ECEWS, Dr. Andy Eyo, who conducted the committee round the farm, said the collaboration was conceived to demonstrate the viability of climate-smart farming in ensuring food sufficiency.

Eyo said the farm, which commenced operations with four greenhouses, had expanded to 14 within two years, and currently supplying high-quality produce to major markets in Uyo and neighbouring communities.

He said ECEWS was exploring cooperative frameworks to enable rural farmers and women’s groups to adopt greenhouse technology for sustainable livelihoods.

In her remarks, the Chief Executive Officer of Aviclaire Farms, Mrs. Victoria Eyo, said the controlled-environment ensured precision cultivation and consistent yields.

She further said the farm served as a capacity-building centre for students, interns, and agri-business trainees.

Niger Delta

C’River Suspends Taskforce Activities Over Drivers’ Protest

Published

1 day ago

March 2, 2026

The Tide

The Cross River State Government has suspended all taskforce activities connected to commercial transportation and ticketing across the state.

The State Governor, Bassey Otu, announced the suspension at an emergency stakeholders meeting on Friday in Calabar.

It would be recalled that commercial drivers in Calabar metropolis took to streets on Thursday to protest alleged multiple taxation and extortion by government agencies.

During the protest, the drivers alleged that taskforce groups claiming to represent the state government openly harassed and extorted them.

Represented at the meeting by Ekpenyong Akiba, his Special Adviser on General Duties, Otu said the suspension would subsist pending further review of the situation.

The Governor stated that the state government did not commission anyone to extort drivers in the name of task force.

He urged commercial drivers and other road users to remain law-abiding while government worked out a lasting solution.

On his part, the Chairman, Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria, Calabar Metropolis, Mr. Sunday Dennis, expressed optimism that the dialogue would yield positive results.

He said the meeting had provided an opportunity for the aggrieved commercial drivers to present their concerns directly to the state government.

Also speaking, the Chairman, Unified Drivers Association, Mr. Nta Henshaw, described the harassment on drivers as worrisome, and urged the state government to be decisive in resolving the matter.