Introduction
Nigeria, the world’s most populated African nation is also the largest producer of oil and gas in Africa. The Niger Delta region of Nigeria, reputed to be one of the most richly endowed in the world contributes about 80% of Nigeria’s national wealth. Where the oil produced in the Niger Delta is the lifeblood of the Nigerian economy, oil has failed to translate to regional prosperity and development in the Niger Delta Instead, the region has been rewarded with massive environmental degradation and political and economic marginalization. The violent repression of peaceful dissent exemplified by Ken-Saro Wiwa and the Ogoni eight Saga, has been the preferred method of the government in addressing agitations from the Niger Delta region over the years. This created an environment of anger, desperation, and violence.
The combination of the activities of the oil companies and the Nigerian government led to the emergence of various armed groups operating under such names as Egbesu Boys, Movement for survival of the Ijaw Ethnic Nationality (MOSEIN), Joint Revolutionary Council, Arogbo freedom fighters, Niger Delta volunteer force and the movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), and most recent is the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA). The activities of these groups which have included the kidnapping of foreign nationals working with the oil companies have created a state of general insecurity in the region. This has negatively impacted the monolithic Nigerian economy, as it has affected the inflow of foreign direct investment which is needed to achieve economic growth and development.
Nigeria, after nearly four decades of oil production, had by the early 1980s become almost completely economically dependent on petroleum extraction, which at the time generated 25% of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP). This portion has since risen to over 60% as of 2008. Despite the vast wealth created by petroleum, the benefits have been slow to trickle down to the majority of the population, who since the 1960s have increasingly been forced to abandon their traditional agricultural practices. The annual population of both cash and food crops dropped significantly in the later decades of the 20th century. Cocoa production dropped by 43% for example; Nigeria was the world’s largest cocoa exporter in 1960, rubber production dropped by 29%, cotton by 65%, and groundnuts by 64%.
Before the discovery and exploration of oil and gas resources in the Niger Delta region, the primary occupation of the people was fishing and farming. Oil exploration has destroyed the subsistence economy of the people. Testimonies from various quarters lend credence to the claim that environmental degradation occasioned by oil spillage has made life extremely difficult for the local people. The destruction of farmlands, fish ponds, and rivers has radically altered the economic life of the once self-reliant and productive region for the worst.
The adoption and implementation of an amnesty program for the militants by the federal government in 2009, has not been able to translate to an increased inflow of foreign direct investment, as renewed cases of kidnapping and oil theft have continued to underscore the perennial problem of insecurity in the region. This brings to the fore the need for a holistic program aimed at addressing the genuine needs of the region beyond pacifying aggrieved militants or community leaders.
Causes of militancy and insecurity in the Niger Delta
There has been a high rate of militancy and insecurity in the Niger Delta starting from 2006. This can be attributable to several factors including the marginalization of the peoples of the Niger Delta, Environmental degradation, bad governance, inconsistent policy framework, divide and rule policy of the oil companies, lack of infrastructural development, non-participation or exclusion of the host communities, corruption at federal and state levels, agitations by the local people, youth restiveness and armed struggle, etc.
- Marginalization, abject poverty, and massive unemployment
The Niger Delta communities have remained grossly socio-economically under-developed and pauperized amidst the immense oil wealth owing to systematic disequilibrium in the production exchange relationship between the state, the transnational companies, and the people. Enormous money had been derived from oil export but the area has been subjected to severe land degradation, socio-economic disorganization, increasing poverty, misery, military occupation, and bloody violence.
Oil extraction has impacted most disastrously on the social and physical environment of the Niger Delta oil-bearing communities massively threatening the fragile subsistent peasant economy and bio-diversity and hence their entire social livelihood and very survival. The oil-producing communities have basically remained dependent and underdeveloped, persistently disempowered, socio-culturally marginalized, and psychologically alienated. The wealth derived from oil resource exploitation and export benefit directly only to the operators of the oil industry and the bureaucrats in the governments.
The discovery of oil in the Niger Delta region in 1957 triggered a chain of events that had led to the political and economic marginalization of the inhabitants. Despite over forty years of oil production in Nigeria and hundreds of billions of dollars of oil revenue, the inhabitant of the Niger Delta region especially the riverine (creek) remain in abject poverty. The poverty level is about 80% while the unemployment level is about 70%. They live without even the most basic amenities such as pipe-borne water and electricity. In the Niger Delta scenes of abject poverty pervade the area, very similar to what you find in a refugee camp.
The distribution of resources from the federation account has been another source of marginalization for the Niger Delta. Before 1999, the allocations to the Niger Delta from the federation account of revenues from oil, decreased progressively as Nigeria became more dependent on OU. In 1960, the allocation was 50% then to 45% in 1970, declining to 20% in 1982, down to 3% in 1992. It was raised to 13% following persistent agitations from the Niger Delta.
Unemployment is very high among the people of the Niger Delta the youth from the Niger Delta do not benefit from the presence of transnational corporations especially the oil companies operating in their communities. Less than 5% of the people from the Niger Delta work in the companies, while women from the region working with the companies are less than 1%. Those who benefit through employment by the oil companies are mostly from the non-oil-producing part of Nigeria.
- Environmental degradation
Due to oil exploration and other human activities in the Niger Delta region, there is evidence of environmental degradation all over the area. Environmental degradation is occasioned by the consistent flow of industrial waste, oil spills, gas flares, fire disasters, acid rain flooding, erosion, etc. which has led to the pollution of farmlands and fish ponds. It has also led to the destruction of properties and human lives, including aquatic and bio-diversity.
According to the World Bank, there are five great plaques of mankind, war, famine, pestilence, environmental pollution, and death. The Niger Delta is in the throes of becoming an environmental waste basket. From the oil spills to the round-the-clock gas flares and effluents from industrial wastes, the fragile ecosystem of the Niger Delta is under constant assault. The unbridled exploitation of crude oil and natural gas beneath the lands of the Niger Delta has caused indescribable and irredeemable ecological devastation of the land. Analysts sum up the environmental impact of the oil industry in the Niger Delta of Nigeria as land deprivation, soil quality alternation destruction of aquatic ecosystems, and air pollution.
Reports on the extent of the oil spills vary the Department of Petroleum Resources estimated 1.8 million barrels of petroleum were spilled into the Niger Delta region between 1976 and 1996 out of a total of 2.4 million barrels spilled in 4,835 incidents (approximately 220 thousand cubic meters). A UNDP report states that there has been a total of 6,817 oil spills between 1976 and 2001, which account for a loss of three million barrels of oil, of which more than 70% was not recovered. 69% of these spills occurred off-shore a quarter was in swamps and 6% spilled on land.
The NNPC places the quantity of petroleum jettisoned into the environment yearly at 2,300 cubic meters with an average of 300 individual spills annually. However, because this amount does not take into account ‘minor spills’, the World Bank argues that the true quantity of petroleum spilled into the environment could be as much as ten times the officially claimed amount. The largest individual spill includes the blowout of a Texaco offshore station which in 1980 dumped an estimated 400,000 barrels (64,000m3) of crude oil into the Gulf of Guinea and Royal Dutch Shell’s Forcades Terminal tank failure which produced a spillage estimated at 580,000 barrels (92,000m3).
In 2010, Baird reported that between 9 million and 13 million barrels have been spilled in the Niger Delta since 1958. Another source even calculated that the total amount of petroleum in barrels spilled between 1960 and 1997 is upwards of 100 million barrels (16, 000,000m3).
Oil spills are a common event in Nigeria. Half of all spills occur due to pipeline and tanker accidents (50%), other causes include sabotage (28%) and oil production operations (2%) with (1%) of the spill being accounted for by inadequate or non-functional equipment. Corrosion of pipelines and tankers is the rupturing or leaking of oil production infrastructures that often do not receive inspection and maintenance. A reason that corrosion accounts for such a high percentage of all spills is that as a result of the small size of the oil fields in the Niger Delta, there is an extensive network of pipelines between the fields, as well as numerous small networks of flow lines. The narrow diameter pipes that carry oil from wells head to flow stations – allow many opportunities for leaks. In onshore areas, most pipelines and flow lines are laid above ground. Pipelines which have an estimated life span of about fifteen years are old and susceptible to corrosion. Many of the pipelines are as old as 20-25 years.
Shell admits that “most of the facilities were constructed between the 1960s and the early 1980s to the then prevailing standards. Sabotage is performed primarily through what is known as “Bunkering”, whereby the Saboteur attempts to tap the pipelines. In the process of extraction, sometimes the pipeline is damaged or destroyed. Oil extracted in this manner can often be sold. Sabotage and theft through oil siphoning have become a major issue in the Niger River Delta States as well, contributing to further environmental degradation. Damaged lines may go unnoticed for days, and repair of the damaged pipe takes even longer. Oil siphoning has become a big business, with the stolen oil quickly making its way into the black market.
While the popularity of selling stolen oil increases, the number of deaths is increasing. In late December 2006, more than 200 people were killed in the Lagos region of Nigeria in an oil line explosion. Nigerian regulations of the oil industry are weak and rarely enforced, allowing, in essence, the industry to self-regulate.
- Impact on the ecosystem
Oil spillage has a major impact on the ecosystem into which it is released and may constitute the destruction of aquatic ecosystems. A major environmental tragedy in the Niger Delta is the waste of aquatic ecosystems. This aspect is quite significant to the people, being that it constitutes a grave threat to a hitherto economic hub of their lives-fishing. It is a common sight that in the process of oil exploration and production materials such as drive cuttings, drill mud, and other fluids that are used to stimulate production are discharged into the environment and most end up in the streams and rivers.
Soil quality alteration is another environmental problem that the Niger-Deltans contend with as a result of the oil industry. It is an environmental condition that is caused by a collection of oil exploration and exploitation activities such as the construction of flow lines and trunk line networks, terminals, digging of location waste pits and barrow pits, oil spillage either from equipment failure, human error, corrosion of pipe to age and sabotage.
Gas flaring is a primary source of air pollution in the Niger Delta. It contributes to 20% of the causes of environmental degradation. The oil companies are wrecking the ecosystem of the Niger Delta through uncontrollable gas flaring. Gases flaring takes place twenty fours and some are believed to be burning for over thirty years, thereby resulting in the release of hydrogen sulfide. This is not only causing environmental degradation but they are also contributing to global warming.
It is also argued that the chemical emissions from the flaring contribute to acid rain, rigger skin disease, and the quick corrosion of roofing sheets in the Niger Delta area, a common sight in this region. The environmental degradation being carried out by the oil companies in the Niger Delta as a result of their non-compliance with internationally recognized environmental standards are damages that their consequences cannot be limited by time. Unfortunately, available evidence shows that the trend is worsening as the government lacks the political will to ensure compliance with the rules by the oil companies.
- Exclusion of the host communities or divide-and-rule policy
Over the years the oil-producing companies operating in the Niger Delta have adopted a divide-and-rule method in which they identify for compensation, people in the host communities they believe can influence the indigenes to ensure that they have a peaceful environment to operate in, at mineral cost. A minute part of the money that should have been spent on corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the development of the host communities, traditional rulers, and local community leaders have become corrupt as they have become recipients of various contract award and cash payments at the detriment of the communities they represent. Where there has been a crisis of leadership in the host communities, the oil-producing companies have tended to support whichever faction was properly disrupting its operations as opposed to which groups or factions were properly constituted and traditionally legitimate. In furtherance of this policy, the shell petroleum development company (SPDC) ignored the traditional rulers and elders and accorded recognition, partnered, and related with the youths, simply because of the power brokers, the liaison with the MNCS, and the object of MNCS patronage. The realization by the youths that violent protests and disruptive actions elicited immediate actions and payments by the oil companies led to the emergence of several youth groups or militias. These youth groups became more daring in their tactics, from minor threats or disruption of activities emerged full-blow militancy activities. “Some youths began to hijack shops and helicopters, kidnap multi-national companies’ staff (MNCS), and vandalize facilities to obtain payoffs, ransoms, and payments from the oil companies.
In most cases, the host communities are alienated from the policy-making processes that affect the communities. According to reports, most oil-producing companies preferably work hand in hand with some established government agencies such as NDDC, instead of direct communication with the host communities. This situation is readily from the embers of hostilities between host communities and the oil-producing companies.
- Bad governance and inconsistent policy framework
Nigeria is a rich country with an alarming number of poor people. The country is vast in natural resources and oil wealth which is controlled by the political class. While a lawmaker earns a bogus salary and allowance, a classroom teacher is paid a meager amount which is usually delayed, sometimes for a few months. More also, the government taxes citizens yet the infrastructural deficit in the country is depressing, intra and interstate roads are extremely poor, the power supply is a mirage, public healthcare is lagging, and fuel/gas scarcity is incessant among others. Inequality and injustice in Nigeria have instigated provocations and led to violence many times. Violence has become an instrument to seek equality and justice. The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) was established in 2000 by President Olusegun Obasanjo with the sole mandate of developing the petroleum-rich Niger Delta region of Southern Nigeria. Since its inauguration, the NDDC has focused on the development of social and physical infrastructures, ecological/environmental remediation, and human development. Meanwhile despite the creation of NDDC, the minorities of the Niger Delta and control of the area’s petroleum resources. This is a result of the inconsistency in the policy framework of NDDC.
The Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) was also announced on June 26, 2009. The presidency announced that it would grant amnesty and an unconditional pardon to militants in the Niger Delta which would last for 60 days beginning on 6th August and ending on 4th October 2009. Former Nigerian President Umaru Musa Yar-Adua signed the amnesty after consultation with the national council of State. During the 60 days, armed youths were required to surrender their weapons to the govern to the government in return for training and rehabilitation by the government. Over 30,000 purported members signed up between October 2009 and May 2011 in exchange for monthly payments and in some cases lucrative contracts for guarding the pipelines. The Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) proved to be a success, with violence and kidnappings decreasing sharply. But the new government of Muhammadu Buhari sees it as potentially enabling corruption and so feels that cannot be continued indefinitely. This act of inconsistency in policy framework triggered the invasion and rise of a new militant group called Niger Delta Avengers (NDA).
Though the Amnesty program tried to reintegrate the restive youths into society, its policy framework has failed to capture and address the major issue of chronic poverty and catastrophic oil pollution which fueled the earlier rebellion.
Impact of militancy on the Nigerian economy
The crisis in the Niger Delta region arising from the activities of the different militant groups operating in the region has brought about some negative. Implications, not only in oil production and other economic activities but also in governance in general, the activities of the militants have impacted the Nigerian economy in various ways.
- Kidnapping and hostage-taking
Kidnapping and hostage-taking have been major tactics of the militant group with foreign nationals working with oil companies as primary targets. In January 2006, hostage-taking of oil workers started in Bayelsa after the declaration of “Operation Orido Danger” by the movement for the Emancipation of Niger Delta (MEND) with the kidnapping of four sets of hostages. Over two hundred expatriates had been kidnapped…Although most have been released within weeks in exchange for ransoms, typically hundreds of thousands of dollars. Though casualty figures from the kidnapping by militants operating in the Nigeria Delta have been low. However, the implication of the kidnappings which involved mainly foreign workers and development partners on Nigeria’s economic development has been enormous. It succeeded in scaring away potential development partners and robbing the Nigerian State of the benefit of such development, alliances, and capital flow to the region.
- Illegal oil bunkering
The operations of militants in the Niger Delta and the insecurity it has made it impossible for security agencies to adequately cover locations of various oil facilities. This has created a veritable ground for illegal bunkering to thrive in the region. Illegal oil bunkering, a euphemism for oil theft, has assumed considerable dimensions in the Niger Delta estimates range from 30,000 to 200,000 barrels per day.
Several of the militant groups are also believed to be involved in illegal oil bunkering. It is believed that has become a major source of funding for the operations of the militants in the Niger Delta. Militants and warlords who engage in illegal oil bunkering justify their actions by claiming that it is a means of providing income for the impoverished residents of the oil-producing communities. It is reported that one day’s worth of illegal oil bunkering in the Niger Delta (at 100,000 bbl at $15bbl) will buy weapons for and sustain a group of 1,500 youths for two months.
- Downsizing of oil companies’ employees and disruption of business
As a result of the activities of militants in the Niger Delta region, SPDC retrenched 3,500 workers in September 2007. Another petrochemical company shut down its operation thereby rendering over 3,000 youths jobless and aggravating the unemployment situation. Restiveness has reduced growth in the business sector. As a consequence of militant activity, Royal Dutch Shell had seen its production dropping from one million barrels per day to about 380,000 barrels per day at its Bonny terminal in the south of the Delta. Exxon has also experienced increased insurgent activity in its Nigerian operations.
Nigeria is already suffering from a production slow down due to militancy, currently the Nigeria Delta is only exporting about 1.8 million barrels per day, compared with a targeted 2.2 million barrels per day. In Rivers State, over 80% of the companies had to stop operations during this era of militancy as expatriates have either gone to their home countries or relocated to safer environments. Even MTN had to shut down its 43 base stations during this era of militancy, as militant activities made them inaccessible. After launching a mission to wipe out militants approved by President Olusegun Obasanjo in early September 2004, Mujahid Dokubo Asari declared “all-out war” with the Nigerian state as well as the oil corporations and threatened to disrupt oil production activities through attacks in wells and pipelines. This quickly caused a major crisis the following day on September 26, as Shell evaluated 235 non-essential personnel from two oil fields cutting oil production by 30,000 barrels per day.
On February 2016, an explosion in a pipeline operated by shall Petroleum Development Corporation, a Royal Dutch shell subsidiary to the shell Forcados export terminal halted both production and imports. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu, the former Minister of State of Petroleum said Nigerian production was down 300,000 barrels a day as a result. On May 11th Shell closed its Bonny oil facility. Three soldiers guarding the installations were killed in an attack, said Col. Isa Ado of the Joint Military Force. A bomb closed down Chevron’s Escravos GTL facility a week earlier. On May 19th Exxon Mobil Qua Iboe shut down and evacuated its workers due to militant threats.
The Niger Delta Avengers (NDA), a militant group in the Niger Delta publicly announced its existence in March 2016. The NDA had attacked oil-producing facilities in the Delta, causing the shutdown of oil terminals and a fall in Nigeria’s oil production to its lowest level in twenty years. The attacks caused Nigeria to fall behind Angola as Africa’s largest oil producer. The reduced oil output has hampered the Nigerian economy and destroyed its budget since Nigeria depends on the oil industry for nearly all its government revenue.
- Impact of militancy and insecurity on foreign direct investment
One of the major factors that determine the economic growth of any nation is investment. For an economy to grow some of its current resources must be diverted from consumption to investment to ensure capital growth. Most poor countries of the world suffer from a shortage of savings and a lack of accumulation of capital that could be channeled into investment purposes. The alternative open to such countries is to attract foreign investment to make up for the shortage of domestic savings or capital. Foreign direct investment occurs when foreigners either wholly or jointly with local investors establish their physical presence in another country through the acquisition of physical assets such as factories, buildings, plants, pieces of machinery, etc. studies reveal that foreign direct investment contributes positively to growth and development of Nigeria’s economy. It has been posited that there is a positive relationship between multinational direct investment and economic growth in Nigeria…1% rise in multinational direct investment will cause as much as 80% growth in gross domestic product (G.D.P).
Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is getting leaner and international oil investors are diverting to a cheaper/safer environment, thereby denying the Nger Delta the chance for more investment that can provide jobs and boost the economy. Analysts have identified insecurity in the Niger Delta and weak fiscal policy as key reasons why investors are beginning to leave for more suitable and stable business opportunities in Africa. An ominous sign for Nigeria’s production is slumping international investment. Foreign direct investment, mostly in the petroleum sector, sank to $5.05 billion from $ 13.96 billion in 2006, according to a United Nations report.
In a survey of the most attractive economies for the location of FDI, 2007-2009 carried out by UNCTAD at the end of 2006, Nigeria was listed as the 40th most attractive economy for the location of FDI. This placed Nigeria in the fourth position in Africa behind South Africa, Egypt, and Morocco. The reality at the end of 2009 proved these projections to be wrong. The inflow of foreign direct investment into the Nigerian economy in 2009 was $8.286bn. This figure was $4.72bn lower than the $13bn generated by Angola within the same period. As of the end of 2010, the inflow of FDI to Nigeria according to the World Investment Report produced by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) had further declined to $6.1bn.
The impact of militancy on the inflow of foreign direct investment is brought out in graphic detail in the treatise of Timi Alaible, who posits that, by January 2009, militancy in the Niger Delta had virtually crippled Nigeria’s economy. Investment inflow to the upstream subsector of the oil industry had dwindled remarkably. Exasperated foreign investors had begun re-directing their investments to Angola and Ghana as preferred destinations over Nigeria. At that point, Angola surpassed Nigeria as Africa’s highest crude oil producer. This dwindling investment in the critical oil and gas sector threatened Nigeria’s capacity to grow its crude oil reserve as planned. Insecurity in the Niger Delta was identified as a key reason why investors were leaving for more stable business opportunities in Africa. For example, due to militant activities in the Niger Delta, Royal Dutch Shell by early 2009 saw its production drop from one million barrels per day to about 250,000 barrels per day. Sabotage, oil siphoning rackets, and kidnapping of oil workers by suspected militants further threatened the operations of the oil companies and exerted immense pressure on the Nigeria economy.
The panacea to ending militancy in Niger Delta
Many suggestions have been given against the backdrop of this act of militancy that has bedeviled the Niger Delta region over the years. Some of these suggestions include resource control and true federalism, the inclusion of host communities in the policy-making processes, direct communication between host communities and oil-producing companies, job creation and economic growth, etc.
Resource control, regional autonomy, and true federalism
Currently, the entire country is agog with calls from various quarters calling for restructuring, for the people of Niger Delta, their idea of restructuring is centered on resource control, The 1979 constitutional amendment gave the federal government full ownership and rights to all Nigeria territory and also declared that eminent domain compensation for seized land would “be based on the value of the crops of the land at the time of acquisition, not on the value of the land itself”. This section of the Constitution bluntly negates the idea of true federalism and resource control. It is worrisome that over 85% of the oil wells in the Niger Delta region have been privatized and are owned by people outside the region. Since there is no constitutional backing to claim ownership of the land, host communities are deprived of the right to ownership. To end this act of militancy, there is an urgent need for the government of Nigeria to enthrone and idolize true federalism, where all the federating units or regions can control their resources at their pace. This will not only not militancy in the Niger Delta region, but it will also foster greater development.
It is imperative to gain this acquaintance that what is happening in the Niger Delta should be perceived as the accumulation of years of frustration. The fact should be made that gross negligence breeds frustration and frustration breeds desperation. The incontrovertible fact is that both the federal government and the multinational companies were grossly negligent for too long a time about the welfare of the people and the communities of the oil-bearing areas in the region.
Curbing youth restiveness, however, is an enormous task that must embrace all stakeholders in the region, without the oil companies meeting with the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and be responsive to their responsibility instead of raising tension in the area and branding the youths as being restive, the fundamentals of meeting the demand of curing youth restiveness in the region will be difficult. The oil and gas companies should see the host communities as partners in progress their rights should not be infringed upon by the companies. The federal government should tackle the problems of deprivation, neglect, and poverty in the area with serious-mindedness in its quest to eradicate the perennial case of youth restiveness in the Niger Delta. The youth decided to take to restiveness because of the manner the federal government spends huge money realized from the region in developing other areas to the detriment of the region.
Implementation of environmental protection laws
It should also effectively implement all environmental protection laws. In the utmost urge, the NNPC and other oil and gas companies operating in the Niger Delta region should bring the lesson of global event home by engaging sustainable environment practices in their operations and activities. By this, our environment would be made pollution free. The Federal Government must involve the people of the Niger Delta region in the decision-making process to avail them of wide choices and opportunities of influencing the socioeconomic and political agenda of the region. Lastly, for the youths, violence, acrimony, and confrontations is not the way forward to solve problems of this magnitude. Youths should be ready to embrace and sort for legal means to articulate their intentions and press home their grievances. The government and the multinational companies must be ready to engage in genuine dialogue with the people of the Niger Delta.
Conclusion
The lesson from the Niger Delta hostilities is that there is no victor and no vanquished. Every other time the federal government tried to suppress the militants by use of force, the agitations got louder and the militancy gained more prominence and relevance. Attacks and reprisals have not been able to stop the militancy. Therefore, recommendations in this work should be considered seriously for implementation. The resultant effect would be an upsurge in economic growth and a better international perception of the area.
References
Agbeze, E.K. and Kalu, U. “Oil a Blessing or a Curse: The Nigeria Experience” European Journal of Social Sciences Vol. 56 No3 April-May, 2018
Ajodo-Adebanjoko, A. “Towards ending conflict and insecurity in the Niger Delta region” Reliefweb 12 September 2017
Amaize, E. “Niger Delta militants at war over pipeline surveillance contract Vanguard 15 September 2022
Asuni, J.B. ‘Blood Oil in the Niger Delta’, USIP Special Report, Washington DC: United States Institute for Peace, 2009
Campbell, J. “Delegitimizing Armed Agitations in Niger Delta” Council on Foreign Relations December 4, 2020
Ebiede, T.M. and Langer, A., “How amnesty efforts in the Niger Delta triggered new violence” Reliefweb 9 Mar 2017
Edet, A.S. “Niger Delta Region and the Crisis of Environmental and Socio-Economic Degradation” International Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities Review Vol. 7, No.2 (2017)
Emmanuel, O. “Seven things Buhari should do to end Niger Delta crisis” Premium Times May 31, 2016
Frederick, A.O. A Theoretical Consideration of the Niger Delta Crisis: Whose Solution? The People’s or the Government’s? Paper presented at the International Conference on the Nigerian State, Oil Industry and the Niger Delta, Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, Nigeria, March 11-13, 2008
GLOBAL CITIZEN Is Oil In Nigeria A Growth Cure Or A ‘Resource Curse’? Lobal Poverty Project August 31, 2012
Kadafa, A.A. “Oil Exploration and Spillage in the Niger Delta of Nigeria” Civil and Environmental Research Vol 2, No.3, 2012
Langer, A. and Ukiwo, U. Horizontal Inequalities and Militancy: The Case of Nigeria’s Niger Delta SPRINGER LINK at https://link.springer.com/chapter/10
Mba, A. “Marginalization and Human Security Challenges in the Niger Delta: Implications for Militancy” 8 August 2022 at https://papers.ssrn.com/so13 papers
Metsese, E.A. “Proffering solutions to violent conflicts in Niger Delta” Vanguard October 26, 2020
Nwogwugwu, N., Emmanuel, A.O. and Egwuonwu, C. “Militancy and Insecurity in the Niger Delta: impact on the inflow of foreign direct investment to Nigeria” International Household Survey Network, 2012
Ogbonne, I.P. “Cutting the head as cure for headache” Inna Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies Vol. No. 1 (2019): Maiden edition
Okoro, K. and Nna, N.J. “Federation and Resource Allocation: The Nigerian Experience” Nigerian Journal of Oil and Politics, Vol. 1, September 1997
Okowa, W.J. “Niger Delta in the Economy and Politics of Nigeria” Being a Paper Presented at the First Convocation Lecture, Niger Delta University, Wilberforce Island, Bayelsa State, 2007
Oluyemi, O.A. “The Military Dimension of Niger Delta Crisi and its Implications on Nigeria national Security” Sage Journals at https://journals.sagepub.com/doi
Peel, M. “Crisis in the Niger Delta; How Failures of Transparency and Accountability are Destroying the Region” Chatham House, Royal Institute of International Affairs, 2005
Premium Times, “Nigeria loses N2.1 trillion to Niger Delta militants, vandals in 2016” October 28, 2016
Tantua, B. “Oil governance in Nigeria’s Niger Delta: Exploring the role of the militias” The Extractive Industries and Society Volume 5, Issue 3, July 2018
Vaughan, A. “Oil in Nigeria: a history of spills, fines and fights for rights” The Guardian 4 Aug 2011
Worl Bank Report, Defining an Environmental Development Strategy for the Niger Delta, Vol. One, 1995
Add comment