Nigeria

Question 1

What are the characteristics of the Niger Delta?

Answer 1

• densely populated
• petroleum rich region
• Homeland of the Ogoni
• 1.5 million people

Question 2

What is the situation like in Nigeria?

Answer 2

• 40% of people live <$1.90 per day
• 12,000/yr are killed by jihadists, kidnappers or the army

Question 3

What does Shell do on the Niger Delta?

Answer 3

• Maintain a joint venture with Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, Eni, TotalEnergies
• called SPDC (Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria)
• Has operated for 50-60 years
• ~3000 spills over 20 years
• forms 40% of total global Shell oil spills

Question 4

What have the effects of oil exploration in the Delta been?

Answer 4

• Groundwater has been contaminated with benzene (carcinogen)
• Water sources contaminated
• resulted on fish and shellfish dying
• infants dying
• 11,000 premature deaths/year

Question 5

Who are the Ogoni?

Answer 5

• Native people of the Niger Delta
• Migrated from Ancient Ghana to Delta
• Represented by MOSOP (Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People)
• use non violent methods to pursue the right of self-determination in Niger Delta

Question 6

What influences have global superpowers had in the Niger Delta?

Answer 6

• UK and Dutch courts have ruled shell to be responsible for the oil leaks
• are responsible as they have not put in sufficient effort to make pipelines harder to attack
• oil usually spills when illegal refineries steal oil from pipelines

Question 7

How has the government used oil profits?

Answer 7

• Own NPPC (Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation)
• $12bn spent per year in subsidising oil prices at pump
• allocation is larger than that for education, health and welfare put together
• fuel prices are low enough that wasteful use is common
• not enough money left to cover production costs involved in extracting fuel
• refineries are closed as a result, forcing government to import refined fuel

Question 8

What are informal refineries?

Answer 8

• Illegal refineries
• leach off pipelines, steal oil
• employ 100s/1000s collectively
• are possible due to corruption amongst officials and security guards
• process of stealing oil results in oil spills
• this is despite carrying a 21 year sentence or death penalty
• > 100 present in Niger Delta

Question 9

How much oil was stolen in Niger Delta in 2022?

Answer 9

• 7% of total oil production
• Worth ~$1bn

Question 10

What threats are faced by the Ogoni?

Answer 10

• Cannot drink water from river as is polluted by oil
• cannot drink rainwater as is acid rain due to burning of crude oil by illegal refineries
• cannot farm as water and groundwater are impure
• soil is infertile due to contamination by oil compounds
• Burning of gases produced in refinement processes creates massive amounts of CO2
• higher risk of cancer and asthma
• also results in lower crop yields

Question 11

How can superpowers help improve minority group rights?

Answer 11

• Creation of deals between groups and state
• involving compensation
• support of courts can be helpful
• EU courts are likely to make a case on human rights
• some development programmes provide money for investment in healthcare resources

Question 12

Why are minority groups rights neglected ?

Answer 12

• Often live in isolated areas
• harder to provide support
• lack legal and financial support to fight TNCs and governments
• Culture may not appeal to tourists
• May be unlikely to participate in new jobs, structures and initiatives created by economic development
• due to lack of education preventing them to do so