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S4C, Ford Foundation inaugurate transitioning report to tackle host communities’ issues

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By Emmanuella Anokam

The Spaces for Change (S4C), with support from the Ford Foundation, on Wednesday inaugurated a report to avert crisis between oil producing companies and their host communities across the Niger Delta region.

The report titled, “Transitioning from GMOU to HCDT: Wins, Challenges, and Further Actions,” which was endorsed by the House of Representatives Committee on Host Communities was inaugurated in Abuja.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that new report narrates the proceedings of the Technical Session of the House of Representatives’ Committee on Host Communities.

It examines the extent to which indigenous and international petroleum companies are living up to their statutory obligations to deliver tangible development to the oil-producing areas in Nigeria under the Host Community Development Trusts (HCDT).

The Executive Director, S4C, Victoria Ibezim-Ohaeri, said during the inauguration that the HCDT, mandated by Chapter three of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, replaced the previous benefit-sharing mechanism called the Global Memorandum of Understanding (GMOU).

Under this mechanism, she said oil and gas companies operating in Nigeria executed benevolent or negotiated agreements with host communities, committing to fund and/or carry out certain community development projects in their areas of operations.

“With a focus on the critical role of the HCDT in promoting sustainable prosperity and peaceful co-existence between oil companies and host communities, this report highlights the wins and challenges associated with HCDT implementation.

“It highlights the emerging good and bad practices, as well as the disparate experiences and modalities established by petroleum corporations for transitioning from GMOU to HCDT,” she said.

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She said it also identified a number of good practices trailing the implementation of the HCDTs across the Niger Delta Region.

She said the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) developed a database comprising upstream companies that had set up the HCDTs in their host communities.

She added that the database was available for viewing by interested persons.

She said the NUPRC also introduced an automated platform for reporting and monitoring the HCDT, created Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) offices in Lagos and Yenogoa, Bayelsa State and formulated and gazetted Host Communities’ Development Regulations, 2022.

“On the other hand, there are bad practices and contentious issues to watch out for.

“Top on that list is the high volume of litigation and protests across oil producing communities; power asymmetry between petroleum corporations and their host communities.

“Lack of independent monitoring of HCDT implementation; companies reluctance to disclose how three per cent Operating Expenditure (Opex) is calculated; divestments without environmental accountability, among others.

“Fortunately, the 10th Assembly of the Nigerian Legislature, through the House of Representatives’ Committee on Host Communities, has shown sincere commitment toward addressing the identified bad practices,” she said.

Speaking, Mr Dumnamene Dekor, Chairman, House Committee on Host Communities, said the inauguration of the report which represented the opinion of all parties became necessary to strengthen the implementation of the Petroleum Industry Act 2021.

According to him, the move will also ensure the verification of claims of Operational Cost and OPEX of the oil companies.

He said the legislators monitoring the implementation by oil companies would be crucial to delivering the objectives of the provision in the PIA.

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Also speaking, Hart Cyril, representing Bonny/Degema Federal Constituency at the House of Representatives, lamented that though the PIA empowered the NUPRC to withdraw licenses of oil firms that violated the regulations on the host communities, but it needed to be more efficient. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

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Edited by Salif Atojoko

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Afonne Emmanuel
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