GOVERNMENT COMMITS TO DEVELOPING NIGER DELTA USING

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ABUJA 000971

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

LONDON FOR AFRICA WATCHER

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/28/2016
TAGS: PGOV KDEM PHUM PTER EPET EAID NI
SUBJECT: GOVERNMENT COMMITS TO DEVELOPING NIGER DELTA USING
OIL INDUSTRY'S MONEY

REF: ABUJA 771

Classified By: Political Counselor Russell Hanks for reasons 1.4 (b) an
d (d)


1. (C) SUMMARY: In the second of what appears to be a
series of high profile meetings aimed at creating momentum to
address underdevelopment in the Niger Delta, the Nigerian
government committed itself to a plan to create 20,000
government jobs and invest 20 trillion Naira of oil industry
money to jump start the process. The nine-point plan was
announced by Obasanjo in a meeting attended by government
officials but largely boycotted by Niger delta indigenes.
Leaders of various Ijaw movements complained that the
President was not serious and that the proposals did not
impact on the area of greatest unrest in southern Delta
state. While the fanfare surrounding this Council has played
out in the press, most observers continue to question its
potential effectiveness and the President's sincerity given
the exclusion of many of the primary grievants from the
process. END SUMMARY.


2. (U) President Obasanjo, the chair of the
recently-created Council of Socio-Economic Development of the
Coastal States of the Niger Delta (known by the unwieldy
acronym CSEDCSND),unveiled a nine point development plan
which he said would create jobs, development and reverse the
negative trends in the region. Speaking at the second of what
appears to be a series of high profile meetings, Obasanjo
said the plan, which would primarily be financed by 20
trillion Naira from the "oil industry" (private oil companies
and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC)),
would focus on nine themes: creating employment,
transportation, education, health, telecommunication,
environment, agriculture, power generation and water resource
development.


3. (U) The announced plan would create some 20,000
government jobs for people in the region by establishing
1,000 new positions in the military, 10,000 with the police,
1,000 in the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC),
and 7,300 teachers. The jobs would be spread out among
residents of the Niger Delta States, with each state
receiving a specific quota.


4. (U) The meeting, which was broadcast live over state
controlled radio and television, was primarily a government
affair and brought together the governors of the various
Niger Delta states, ministers, civil servants, the managing
director of the Shell-Nigeria Joint Venture Company, and a
handful of traditional leaders. Conspicuously absent were
high ranking executives from other major oil companies, most
well-known civil society groups from the region, prominent
Ijaw leaders, NGOs and representatives from the group
responsible for violence and kidnapping, the Movement for the
Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND). Most of these
individuals and groups boycotted the meeting and said the
initiative itself was not credible.


5. (U) The government unveiled a number of high profile
proposals, including dredging of the Niger River to
facilitate improved transportation and trade, a rural
electrification initiative that would benefit 396
communities, the upgrading of the Petroleum Training
Institute in Warri to a degree-granting institution, the
creation of a Federal Polytechnic in Bayelsa State, the
completion of a syringe factory in Rivers State, extending
cell phone coverage to isolated communities, the promise of
renewed efforts to rectify water pollution problems in the
region, and the establishment of 12 mega gas stations in
outlying areas. Other proposals included funding 6,000
student scholarships and the training of 20,000 welders.


6. (C) One of the people suggested as a mediator by MEND is
Oronto Douglas, a former state government official and
environmental attorney. He has chosen to take a back seat on
the CSEDCSND established by President Obasanjo. "The
militants asked me to mediate, not participate in such a
conference" he told PolCouns. He said that he had met
individually with the President, PDP godfather Tony Anenih,
Rivers State Governor Peter Odili and Chief of Defense Staff
Ogumudia. Douglas claimed that none of them were interested
in talking to the militants or any other group in the region
to resolved differences and agree on a way forward. Douglas
said he suggested to each prior to the President's initiative
was a small working group of no more than 35 participants
from all sides including federal, state and local government
officials, NGOs, a "representative" group of Ijaws and the

ABUJA 00000971 002 OF 002


US/UK Missions as observers.


7. (C) Another prominent Ijaw spokesman, Dr. Pere Ajuwa,
also commented negatively on the sincerity of the GON. He
said that Ijaws across the social spectrum remain
disillusioned with President Obasanjo and with Shell Oil
specifically. He pointed to the estimated 1,000 deaths in
the region and about 600 cases against Shell that remain
unresolved as "poisoning the atmosphere." He claimed that
the President's initiative was like "pouring sand in the
wound," and would likely lead to more unrest in the region.
Ajuwa suggested that the only way to address the problem was
to "renegotiate" the current joint venture model. A member
of the Delta State government team that attended the meeting
also complained about the attitude of Obasanjo. He also
suggested that one thing to help Delta State specifically
would be to move the capital from Asaba, a relatively
isolated community in terms of Delta State, to the larger and
more centrally located Warri. "This would have an immediate
effect," he claimed.


8. (C) Comment: While the establishment of the CSEDCSND
could, in theory, serve as vehicle to raise the level of
trust between the Nigerian government and residents of the
Niger Delta, it also highlights the reasons similar
initiatives have failed. The primary reasons for these
previous failures included a lack of consultations with the
grievants, the preference for show over substance and a lack
of follow through. While the Kaiama Declaration of 1999 and
the Ogumudia report of 2002 have been ignored, the situation
has deteriorated. It is too early to tell if ultimately this
initiative will run into the same problems as its
predecessors, but it is clear that much more needs to be done
avoid the pitfalls of the past. The first two meetings,
boycotted by significant constituencies from the region, did
little to build trust between the people of the Niger Delta
and the GON. The President's 9-point plan will be critically
scrutinized for every flaw.

FUREY