A CASE STUDY OF OIL AND GAS OPERATION IN NIGERIAN DELTA REGION ON THE APPLICATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS TO COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENTS

Abstract

As one of the relatively largest oil producers, the economy of Nigeria heavily depends on oil revenues. However, the process of extraction of oil from the earth has led to a plethora of significant environmental damage, human rights violations, and socio-economic inequality. Local communities, more particularly in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria, are daily saddled with the effects of oil spills, gas flaring, and disruptions of daily livelihood. By diverse imagination, these local communities are quite often politically excluded from decision-making processes. Drawing attention from the above, the authors examined the relationship between oil and gas operations on the one hand, and the intricate issue of human rights and community engagements on the other hand in Nigeria. The paper therefore argued for the need to ensure endearing peace, security and order among the tripartite parties comprised of oil producers, host communities and government. The authors further accommodated the challenges of ensuring human rights in this process, and thereafter maintained the need for significant progress in establishing a normative policy and framework on human rights and community engagement in Nigeria’s Oil and Gas Operations, notwithstanding the subsisting gaps, inconsistencies and violations. The paper concluded by recommending stronger legal enforcement, corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs, and more inclusive decision-making to protect community rights and promote sustainable development.