Mkpoikana Udoma
Port Harcourt — Amid environmental concerns, women from the Ogoni ethnic nationality in Rivers State have demanded for inclusion in the ongoing divestment plans of International Oil Companies, IOCs, regarding crude oil and gas facilities in Ogoniland.
Ogoniland plays host to six oil fields namely Bodo West, Bomu, Yorla, Ebubu, Afam-lekuma, and Korokoro; while five of these fields have been inoperative since 1993, Afam-lekuma has been producing and was operated by the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited, SPDC until the company lost its OML11 license in 2021.
These oil fields have over 200 oil wells and numerous flow stations hitherto operated by the SPDC.
Speaking during the recent Ogoni Women Environment Assembly, organized by the Lokiaka Community Development Centre, the women expressed their concerns over the lack of information and inclusion regarding ongoing divestments, particularly following Shell’s loss of its OML11 operating license.
Speaking for the women, Mrs Keenam Erebura from Luusue Sogho in Khana LGA, emphasized the urgent need for a thorough cleanup of polluted areas before any divestment discussions take place.
Erebura highlighted that women have been disproportionately affected by environmental degradation, which has severely impacted their agriculture and food security.
She lamented the exclusion of Ogoni women from critical conversations about oil operations and divestments, and insisted that women, as the backbone of their communities, must be involved in negotiations that affect their lives and livelihoods.
“We are not aware that IOCs with facilities in Ogoniland are divesting. We only know Shell and we don’t know which company is buying up from them.
“We don’t know why they (IOCs) are divesting from onshore in the Niger Delta. We are not aware and we are not involved in the ongoing divestments process.
“We should be involved in the divestments. We should be kept on the known before, during, and after the divestment. Our advice is that they should come and clean up our land before the divestments.”
Earlier, the Executive Director of Lokiaka Community Development Centre, Mrs Martha Agbani, urged the women to become more informed about their rights and environmental issues.
Agbani noted that the degradation caused by legacy oil spills has left many women struggling with food security, emphasizing that environmental challenges should involve everyone, particularly those most impacted
“Women need to know what is happening in their environment. We need to start asking questions, you need to start breaking in to know what’s happening around you. You need to know when there is an oil spill when the pipeline or manifold is repaired.
“Ogoni communities are already core degraded areas with legacy spills. Women can no longer talk about food security or even what they can eat. Women can no longer pick periwinkles, mollusks, and clamps in the river. Now those who caused these damages are leaving the environment without any compensation or recourse to the people. So it is imperative to conscientize them to know their rights and how to go about it.
“Environmental challenges are not just for men, the impact is more on the women. Women are the core farmers who interact with the environment and should be brought to the negotiation table regarding divestments. Women also deserved free prior consent on the issue of divestments,” Agbani said.
