Oritsegbubemi Omatseyin
Lagos — Considering the centrality of the National Oil Spill Contingency Plan, NOSCP, in oil spill response in Nigeria, the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency, NOSDRA, and F1 Consulting have signed a Memorandum of Understanding, MOU, to institutionalize and strengthen understanding of NOSCP at the grassroots of oil hosts communities on the basis of certain provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
Speaking during the signing of the MOU in NOSDRA’s headquarters in Abuja, the Director-General/Chief Executive of the Agency, Engr. Chukwuemeka Woke, while commending the officials of both organisations for the remarkable efforts injected into the articulation of the document, stressed that the agency was fully committed to implementing its content in collaboration with partners.
Engr. Woke used the opportunity to call on oil companies and other stakeholders for cooperation, adding that NOSDRA could not succeed in this exercise without maximum cooperation from critical stakeholders, including government agencies, oil companies and oil host communities.
While noting the deliberate flouting of provision of the Act of NOSDRA that stipulate reporting of spills by oil companies within 24 hours of occurrence, the DG said with the signing of MOU between the two organisations, he believed that aggressive mobilization and robust collaboration with host communities would help plug such a lacuna in the interest of addressing the nagging issue of spills and the attendant pollution in such communities.
Earlier in his address, the Lead Consultant of F1 Consulting, Jude Ndubuisi, maintained that one of the problems in the Niger Delta region was the effect of the exploration and exploitation of oil and gas in Nigeria.
He expressed hope that the PIA had created an opportunity for stakeholders to deepen the understanding of the NOSCP, particularly for NOSDRA to facilitate prompt response to oil spill within host communities under the pivot of PIA.
He said: “We cannot be talking of NOSCP only in Abuja, but in the grassroots of oil host communities. PIA has created an opportunity to deepen the understanding by bringing the Plan to the community level”.
