Since the late 1950, Shell have been accused of making huge profits from oil exploration and doing little for their host communities in the Niger Delta in return , thus this situation precipitated crisis that threatened peace and stability in the Niger Delta region and Nigeria as whole. Particularly prominent of these incidents was the extra-judicial killing of the renowned Ogoni environmental
The rural sector was not immune from the government’s blend of mismanagement and corruption, which aggravated the problem of the decline in the agricultural sector. Thus, due to various reasons like stated above Nigeria, an oil dependent country has been highly vulnerable to fluctuations in oil price and as failed to move the economy on a path of sustained development. Furthermore, oil abundance has generally not improved the circumstances but rather has led to negative externalities due to increased pollution of rivers and agricultural land. These factors have led to a desire by certain groups (such as MEND) to gain a greater share of the oil wealth which has resulted in civil and political conflict as well as vandalism of oil infrastructure, which has further increased environmental problems. Therefore, it is important for Nigeria to focus on its endowment of gas resources,
Removal of an organism from its environment can often leave irreversible impacts on the environment its self. Historically humans have overharvested animal and plant species to maximize their short term profit, even though it is at the expense of the sustainability of many species. Over harvesting follows a pattern – species are harvested from the wild to make a profit which then encourages more people to get involved in the species extraction. This competition then encourages the development of large scale of extraction which eventually causes extinction of the species. The most common example of overharvesting is fishing.
Case Study: WIWA v. ROYAL DUTCH PETROLEUM COMPANY The case below gives a situation where Shell Oil Corporation was sued for human rights violations arising from oil production in Nigeria. This case was a class action in the United States District Court on behalf of the Ogoni people who alleged that the Royal Dutch Petroleum Company, Shell Transport and Trading Company, P.L.C., and Shell Petroleum Development Corporation of Nigeria (Inc.) collectively known as “Shell” cooperated with and assisted the Nigerian military in the brutal suppression of the Ogoni people, a Nigerian minority group. The Ogoni people had demanded that Shell observes proper environmental safeguards and to pay compensation for environmental damages in relation
Some of the greatest externalities of Monsanto’s actions include long-lasting pollution of land and water ways; eroding public trust in government, corporations, and scientists; loss of jobs within the farming industry; and wasted legal fees. As a result, the value that Monsanto creates for its own employees and shareholders does not outweigh the costs associated with its reckless
There was a death of good governance throughout the period of military regime in Nigeria. During this period that lasted over two decades, Nigeria witnessed a high level of subversion of rule of law, lack of accountability and transparency, military dictators were not responsive to the plight of the masses, public officials are not efficient and effective and more importantly, the masses did not participate in the decision-making process. This scenario created economic backwardness throughout the military regime. Nigeria return to democratic governance gave strong hope and promise as regards to good governance due to strong synergy democratic regimes have with good governance. After over decade of democratic practice in Nigeria, the hope and promises seems to have eluded Nigerians because a critical look at the Mo Ibrahim Governance
When the Nigerian government does come up with a plan to combat these issues, the plan usually lacks a proper procedure and cannot be maintained in the long run. The degradation of the environment in the Niger Delta, is a direct result of oil companies that have failed to take social responsibility into consideration in their various operations. The numerous environmental consequences of oil exploration have become huge obstacles that face development in the Niger Delta. One of these obstacles are oil spills, which mainly occur
CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background to the Study Human rights violation has been a major challenge in Nigeria over the years. Since independence in 1960, the country has experienced both military and civilian regimes which have been accused of human rights violation. The failure of these regimes to ensure respect for human rights has contributed to several cases of violent conflicts in different parts of Nigeria. The situation in the Niger Delta area is not different. The Niger Delta is basically the area in which petroleum production takes place in Nigeria.
Abstract Increasing inequality in Nigeria has been of growing interest to scholars, international political observers and the Nigerian public since the creation of the country in 1914 by the British colonial masters. The focus of this paper is on the extent to which the practice of democracy in Nigeria’s Fourth Republic has contributed to the reduction of inequality. The paper begins with the dimensions of inequality in Nigeria. The study shows that democratic governance has not adequately bridged the inequality gap in country. The paper further identifies reasons for the failure of democratic governance to address the problem of inequality successfully.
This impact has led to mixed emotions with regards to mining and its practices and as a result the introduction of mining regulations to ensure that the negatives are outweighed by positives. Consequently, although there are benefits from mining, there are several negative effects of mining for the people and the environment which have a detrimental effect. BENEFITS ARE NOT EQUALLY SPREAD To reiterate, the mining sector has benefits but in most, if not all cases it comes at a cost to those who should be benefited by mining the most. Therefore, it seems that the Large-scale mining companies, investors, and the government take precedence and reap the rewards. In ‘’Mining Capitalism: The relationship between Corporations and their critics’’, Stuart Kirsch looks at powerful corporations and how they often misuse their power - according to Kirsch, corporations are responsible for a wide range of