FG Secures $1bn Commitment for Niger Delta Clean-up, says Project won’t be Abandoned

FG Secures $1bn Commitment for Niger Delta Clean-up, says Project won’t be Abandoned

President Muhammadu Buhari is on Thursday expected to flag off the much-talked about clean-up of the Niger Delta beginning from Ogoniland in Rivers state. As preparations for the visit switch into top gear, the federal government has assured Nigerians, especially residents of the region, that the exercise will not stop until it is completed.

According to the Punch, the federal government has put in place what it believes to be adequate measures that would ensure the sustenance of the clean-up exercise in the region and has therefore urged residents of the affected areas to support the government as the programme begins.

Minister of environment, Mrs Amina Mohammed, stated on Tuesday that the government has secured a $1 billion funding commitment for the clean-up programme while some other government agencies and international oil companies would equally be providing funds for the cleaning exercise to ensure its sustenance. The minister said:

“I doubt that the work will stop. I think first and foremost, the ‘Polluter Pays’ principle is up and doing and oil companies are paying for what they do.

“In this particular case, there’s been a commitment of $1bn and the governance structure that we are putting in place involves the governing council, which will determine the programme and how the road map is being implemented. But then, there is also a board of trustees where a trust fund for that money will be put and we hope to have fund managers who can begin to leverage that.

“Investors in the Niger Delta abound by a number of agencies. The Ministry of Niger Delta has a budget and they are part of this. Therefore, we look forward to ensure that we are working in the same direction. And aside from cleaning up the area, we will be looking at making it economically buoyant through diversification.”

Mohammed urged residents of the Niger Delta to show interest in the exercise, stressing that President Buhari would be there in person to start the clean-up programme. She also called for community involvement in preserving the environment of the Niger-Delta after the clean-up exercise.