The Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN) and more than 20 Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) have urged the new leadership of the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) to fully implement the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Assessment Report on Ogoniland in Rivers State, Nigeria.
During a One-day National Roundtable on HYPREP organized by the Peoples Advancement Centre (PAC) in Port Harcourt, Chima Williams, the Executive Director of ERA/FoEN, emphasized the importance of advancing the full implementation of the UNEP report to address the environmental devastation in Ogoniland. Despite having an activist, Professor Nenibari Zabbey, as the new Project Coordinator of HYPREP, the CSOs remain committed to pressing for full implementation.
Williams acknowledged Professor Zabbey’s dedication to restoring the Ogoni environment as recommended by UNEP and his published papers on the cleanup exercise. The CSOs expressed their willingness to work with Professor Zabbey to achieve the objectives of the report.
Professor Zabbey, the HYPREP Project Coordinator, assured the CSOs that they would be carried along in the process and that HYPREP would address the identified gaps in its operations. He also emphasized the need to address the gender imbalance within the agency, with only five percent representation of women, and the importance of mangrove restoration and addressing the livelihood challenges of the locals.
Professor Zabbey stated that a framework for inclusion, community engagement, and standard operating procedures would be established to address the concerns raised by the Ogoni people and civil society.
The workshop, organized by PAC, aimed to hold HYPREP accountable and ensure a focused and holistic implementation of the UNEP assessment. The stakeholders made critical recommendations, including the need for the federal government to adhere to HYPREP’s original mandate, the establishment of a civil society liaison desk within HYPREP, conducting chemical, air, and health assessments as recommended by the UNEP report, and addressing staff shortages in key areas such as monitoring and operations.
The stakeholders emphasized the importance of HYPREP staying true to its mandate and fulfilling its responsibilities to effectively address the environmental challenges in Ogoniland.
