togo, ghana & nigeria: inspiring west africans’ resistance to controversial pipeline
The newly-operational 680-kilometer West African Gas Pipeline (WAGP) from Nigeria through Benin, Togo and Ghana is unlikely to fulfil its promise to reduce gas flaring in the conflict-ridden Niger Delta. Local communities on the pipeline’s path along the Gulf of Guinea have confronted issues including inadequate compensation, insufficient safety measures, pollution and damage to fisheries. Yet there is little recourse to hold the Bermuda-registered West African Pipeline Company (WAPCo) consortium responsible for its actions.
Witnessing the waning momentum in communities which have struggled for years to hold WAGP actors accountable, FoE Nigeria, FoE Togo and FoE Ghana sought separate funding for a coordinated community exchange. The purpose was to inspire insights, confidence and cohesion to aid the communities’ resistance movement in Nigeria, Benin, Togo and Ghana -- a first step toward the ultimate goal of a court case at the West African Court of Justice.
what happened: First, field visits were made by campaigners to Nigeria’s Badagry area, a river delta zone in Lagos state affected by the pipeline, to see which communities would most benefit from the exchange. Next, Nigerian community members from Ajido (a Badagry-area village) visited affected communities in Ghana, along with FoE staff from Togo, Ghana and Nigeria. Finally, the groups worked to document results from these visits.
what we learned: The projects united and boosted community members’ confidence, giving them a better understanding of the problems, the stakes involved, and approaches required, to continue the campaign. According to Amegadze Kokou Elorm of FoE Togo, “The people can now speak with one voice … they can together forge a common front to tackle the problem.”
The visits helped communities’ commitment grow, as evidenced by their agreement to work together and hold a joint press conference. According to Prince Chima Williams of FoE Nigeria, “We won the confidence of the people and thus increased their participation by painstakingly and truthfully explaining every issue of concern to them to the best of our knowledge and understanding. In fact, the community representatives became even more moved to ask questions from the WAPCo promoters and operators …”
The main challenges encountered during the exchange were: coordinating between three FoE groups; rebuilding communities’ confidence; linking the various local communities; and dealing with language barriers when communicating with local people. In the main, these barriers were overcome.
What’s more, collaboration between African FoE groups was strengthened through organising this successful exchange, and staff’s capacity was enriched by seeing how other groups work. The groups also gained valuable insight from their exposure to the realities of the communities they visited.
In terms of what might be done differently, the release of funds to one group ahead of others was problematic, causing delays to commencing this common project.
what next: A joint legal action against WAPCo at the ECOWAS Court of Justice, to seek enforcement of the communities’ rights under the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights. Acquiring funding to help affected communities form a union that aims to address their common problem.
with thanks to our funders: the dutch ministry of foreign affairs
