Community Development

SACA tries to investigate what makes host communities refuse to take ownership of development projects executed for them by oil companies and resort to harmful practices against the companies such as attacking the companies’ facilities. It carries out researches in the communities making up the 4 Clusters, to understand what works and what does not work in their relationships with the companies. SACA then discusses the issues observed with the concerned companies and engages them to improve the deliveries and remove the social bottlenecks to their operations.

Our Interventions

Housing Projects

Many houses are built by the oil companies in a host community. Most common among them are king’s/chief’s palaces, townhalls, classroom blocks and laboratories. In some cases, such as in Ogboloma community, whole estates are built for people displaced from their ancestral homes by the siting of companies’ facilities such as pipeline Right of Way (ROW). SACA monitors their executions to ensure standards, transparency and accountability, and their completion. SACA has got Agip to finish and equip it’s community health center for Ikarama community which it had abandoned for over 10 years.

Rural Electrification

To be able to peacefully explore and drill their oil/gas, companies often promise host communities some amenities such as electricity. At the end, some of the communities allege that the amenities are either not provided or were provided with less quality than was stated in the agreements. SACA works with the Cluster Development Boards (CDBs) and the Community Trusts (CTs) under the GMoU to ensure that whatever are promised to the communities are delivered, as and when due. After years of pressure from SACA, not only Ogboloma, but the entire Gbarain Kingdom has got electricity from Shell.

Road Construction

Majority of the development projects being executive by Shell in the communities hosting their multi-billion dollar Integrated Oil/Gas Gathering Project (IOGP) in Bayelsa State are roads, specifically concrete walkways. Some are executed to high standards while others are shoddy, depending on the contractor. SACA works with the CDBs and the CTs to ensure that quality is always maintained.

Potable Water

SACA has advocated for the completion of many abandoned projects, including roads, electricity projects, etc. But the most worrisome are abandoned water projects. There are numerous of them in Bayelsa State. SACA has pressed the companies for years to complete some of them, especially the Gbarain Mega Water project started and abandoned by Shell. SACA got Agip and Shell to provide potable water for Ikarama community.

Highlights

Project Monitoring & Evaluation to Ensure Transparency, Standards and Users’ Satisfaction

Projects Inspection

Some SACA staff inspecting some building projects in Gbarain/Ekpettiama Cluster executed for the communities by Shell, for the GMoU Review. Some of the projects were rejected by the communities because they fell short of quality for their costs. For example, this yellow building was said to have cost N28 million Naira, an equivalent of US$140,000 at the time.

Data Collection

Dennis of SACA inspecting and documenting road projects, mostly concrete walkways through host villages, constructed by Shell. Some of the communities welcomed the concrete walkways while others are not happy with them because of the quality and because they thought human development such as scholarships and skills training would be more useful to them.

Working with Int'l Researchers

From time to time, SACA hosts students and researchers from various universities across the world; from the US, The Netherlands, the UK, etc. This lady who came from Ireland, is one of them. They come to carry out their researches with us and we assist them, bringing them around major areas and helping them to meet and discuss with relevant stakeholders.

Focus Group Discussions

Apart from active personal observations, we also use various methodologies for our researches on the development projects and the communities’ experiences with them, including questionnaires, interviews (KIIs), Focus Group Discussions. FGDs with community leaders, such as this one with Koroama paramount ruler and his cabinet, are daily activities in SACA.

We research, mobilise, sensitise and support groups to constructive engage with other stakeholders through right-based approaches.

Programs & Activity Briefs

Alternative Livelihoods
Victims of the 2022 Flood Disaster in Nigeria Receive Support to Uphold their Rights to Sustainable Livelihoods

Stakeholders Alliance for Cooperate Accountability (SACA) commissioned and flagged off the distribution of cassava stems and plantain suckers to 1092 farmers in Bayelsa State, Nigeria.  …

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Community Developments
SACA also Concludes Evaluation of the GMoU in Gbarain-Ekpetiama Cluster

SPDC’s GMoU with their host communities in Bayelsa State is encountering some challenges with some of the host communities dissatisfied with it. An agreement was …

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Community Developments
SACA Concludes Evaluation of Shell’s GMoU in Okordia-Zarama Cluster

SACA has completed the evaluation of Shell’s on-going sustainable development efforts in the 9 host communities making up the Okordia-Zarama Cluster. This evaluation is a …

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Alternative Livelihoods
SACA Inaugurates Three Project Management Committees in Bayelsa State, Nigeria.

SACA in partnership with Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC) inaugurated three Project Management Committees to implement their joint project, titled, “Protect, Respect and Remedy – …

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Activity Showcase

Our Partners