The African Centre for Leadership, Strategy and Development, (Centre LSD) has insisted responsibility from duty bearers, to amplify the voices of communities that have long been sidelined, and to contribute to a roadmap that ensures a healthier, safer, and more sustainable environment for all inhabitants of the Niger Delta region.
Speaking, the Executive Director Centre LSD Mr. Monday Osasah said that, while the region has generated immense revenue for the county, its people have faced environmental devastation, loss of livelihoods, destruction of ecosystems, and a profound erosion of dignity.
The Executive Director stated this during a Press Briefing on the Clean-Up of the Niger Delta and the Revamp of the Ecosystem Validation Policy on Tuesday, in Abuja.
During his welcome remarks, Osasah said that, for over six decades, the Niger Delta which was once lush, fertile, and teeming with life has endured the heavy burden of crude oil exploration and exploitation.
“Today marks yet another critical step in our collective pursuit of justice, accountability, and environmental restoration for the people and communities of the Niger Delta.
“We gather here today to spotlight one of the gravest environmental tragedies in Africa’s history and validate a policy framework that seeks to transform despair into hope, pollution into prosperity, and neglect into renewed national commitment.
“The situation is not just ecological; it is socio-economic and deeply human.
During the press statement, the Founder Centre LSD Dr. Otive Igbuzor, recalled that Centre LSD has been in the forefront of the engagement on the clean-up of the Niger Delta for about a decade.
Dr. Igbuzor further said that, for decades, the region has borne the brunt of oil exploration and exploitation, suffering ecological degradation, loss of livelihoods, and socio-economic disempowerment. “These wounds have Festered, largely unattended.