The Minister of Environment, Hon Balarabe Abbas Lawal, has commissioned two water facilities in Bomu Community and Kporghor Community in Gokana and Tai Local Government Areas respectively of Rivers State.
The commissioning ceremony, which took place in Bomu Community last Friday witnessed a large crowd of enthusiastic Ogoni people and personalities from all walks of life.
The Minister was accompanied at the event by the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Engr Abubakar Momoh and some bigwigs of federal agencies.
Before the commissioning of the water projects proper, the Ministers had visited the barricaded HYPREP’s remediation site in Ogale Community in Eleme Local Government Area to assess the situation, before proceeding to the palace of the Gbere-Mene Gokana Kingdom, King Festus Babari Bagio on a courtesy visit, where they and other dignitaries were treated to a lavish reception.
At the palace, the two Ministers and the Project Coordinator of HYPREP, Prof Deinibarini Zabbey were presented awards of excellence by the Gokana Youth Council led by MeneKpakol E. Kpakol.
Lawal and Zabbey were also presented their certificates of recognition by the Gokana Council of Traditional Rulers and Chiefs as members, having been inaugurated into the council last year.
While inaugurating the water facilities, Lawal praised the Ogoni people for their support to the President Bola Tinubu administration and the various projects being carried out by HYPREP in their land, and enjoined them to continue to take ownership of the projects.
The Minister also issued International Maritime Organisation(IMO) Levels 1 and 2 certificates to trained community workers as well as launched the pilot cook stove project and equally unveiled GROWCOON for growing mangrove seedlings.
As a way of commemorating the 2024 International Mangrove Day which was marked that Friday, the Ministers and the Project Coordinator of HYPREP planted mangroves at the Bomu waterfront.
Goodwill messages were also delivered at the occasion by the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs; the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of HYPREP, Dr Mike Nwielaghi; the representative of the United Nations Environment Programme(UNEP); representative of Shell Petroleum Development Company(SPDC); representative of Stakeholder Democratic Network(SDN); representative of the Centre of Environment and Human Rights Development(CEHRD); and the spokesman of CRAC , HYPREP, King Suanu Baridam.
In his welcome address, the Project Coordinator of HYPREP, Prof Nenibarini Zabbey said the commissioning of the water facilities reflects the new spirit of accelerating the Ogoni clean-up project in alignment with Priority 3, Derivable 3 of the Renewed Hope Agenda, which emphasises the importance of environmental sustainability and community empowerment as critical pillars for sustainable development.
He noted that HYPREP is proud to contribute to this national agenda, reflecting a new spirit of determination and action.
According to him, the Minister of Environment’s wisdom and guidance have ensured that the Project Coordination Office proceeded meaningfully while carrying out this presidential directive.
The Project Coordinator said “the commissioning of the water projects marks another milestone in our collective journey toward successfully implementing the UNEP Report on Ogoniland recommendations”.
He further indicated that access to clean and safe water is a fundamental human right, as the people witness once again the fulfilment of this promise to the hydrocarbon impacted communities in Ogoniland, and urged the communities to continue to protect the water facilities for common use.
Zabbey hinted that HYPREP is strengthening healthcare facilities across the four local government areas of Ogoniland.
He also announced that the construction of the Centre of Excellence for Environmental Restoration is at 60 percent completion rate, as a committee has been established to recommend a framework for its operations.
According to him, progress is being made on the Ogoni Specialist Hospital while the Buan Cottage Hospital has been roofed.
The Project Coordinator equally revealed that the training of 5,000 Ogoni youths and women in 20 skill areas is nearing completion while the Minister has graciously approved the provision of skill-specific starter packs to the trainees.
He said HYPREP is also enhancing its stakeholder engagement strategies, ensuring that the voices and needs of the Ogoni people are at the forefront of its initiatives.
He said the Project is undertaking the world’s largest restoration of oil-degraded mangroves, as it has so far planted 514,819 mangrove seedlings.
The Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Engr Abubakar Momoh noted in his goodwill message that the Federal Government is highly committed to the clean-up project in Ogoniland, and appealed to the youths to remain calm and not allow politicians to use them to foment trouble or to engage in anything that would disrupt and truncate the gains already achieved, saying he was delighted to witness the commissioning of the water facilities and for having come to witness what was happening in Ogoniland.
He also expressed joy that President Tinubu had within a tickle of the eye reinstated the Project Coordinator as soon as interventions were made on his behalf.
He said the Niger Delta Development Commission(NDDC) in particular has taken a different shape under the President Tinubu administration, and assured the people of Niger Delta that good things would continue to come to the region.
According to him, the Niger Delta would be greatly transformed, going by the allocations made for the region in this year’s budget.
The dignitaries were treated to scintillating cultural displays at the event.

By: Donatus Ebi