Contending Issues in the Niger Delta Crisis of Nigeria - Journal of ...

Clement Odiri Obagbinoko
The issue of environmental degradation in the Niger Delta is
crucial to sustainable development and thus poses a grave challenge
to the development of the region. Much of the damage caused to the
environment is through gas flaring and oil spillages and there is
overwhelming evidence to this effect. The average rate of gas flaring
in the world is 4% and in Nigeria, over 70% of associated gas are
flared. Nigeria has the notorious record of 25% of all gas flared in the
world. It has also been placed on record that an average of one oil
spill occurs every week in the Niger Delta.
(http//www.nigerdeltaawareness.com.2008) And government
disposition towards the issue of environmental degradation leaves
much to be desired. There has not been visible commitment on the
part of government to legislate against environmental pollutions and
even where such legislations exist, their enforcement are usually a
problem. For example, in the issue of gas flaring in the Niger Delta
the federal government has not been firm on the need to finally
determine the deadline for gas flaring.
Perhaps one reason why interventionist policies have failed to
achieve their objectives in the Niger Delta is due to the fact they have
suffered acceptability problem in the hands of the people who are
suppose to benefit from such policies. With the diverse nature of the
problems in the region, the various antidotes being sought do not go
down well with the entire people of the region. This is why some
would hail the establishment of separate Ministry of Niger Delta
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