For over 60 years, oil extraction has shaped life in the Niger Delta — enriching corporations and political elites while leaving communities with polluted rivers, ruined farmlands, collapsed fisheries, and entrenched poverty. The Niger Delta Manifesto for Ecological Justice — Youth Edition is a response to that reality, written for the young people, grassroots defenders, and community activists who will carry the struggle forward.
Published by the Niger Delta Alternatives Convergence (NDAC) in collaboration with the Safe Space Development Foundation (SHADEF) and The Young Environmentalists Network (TYEN), this 2025 Youth Edition is adapted from the original Niger Delta Manifesto for Socio-Ecological Justice by the Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF).
What the Manifesto Covers
The document traces the Niger Delta’s journey from pre-colonial trading kingdoms, through British colonial conquest, to today’s reality of more than 1,481 oil wells, over 7,000 kilometres of pipelines, and 120 gas flaring sites — making the region one of the most polluted on earth.
Key issues addressed include:
- State repression and the criminalisation of host communities
- Chronic oil spills, gas flaring, and the loss of farming and fishing livelihoods
- The rise of artisanal refining and its underlying causes
- Corporate divestment by Shell, ExxonMobil, and Total without accountability for decades of damage
- The shortcomings of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA)
- Failures of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) and the 13% derivation formula
- Massive deforestation in Cross River State and threats to indigenous land rights
- Worsening climate impacts on coastal communities
Eight Demands for Justice
The manifesto closes with eight clear demands, including a full environmental audit and clean-up, accountability before oil companies exit the region, reform of the PIA and NDDC, protection of indigenous land and forest rights, urgent climate adaptation measures, and improved security for waterways and fishing grounds.
Why It Matters
This is not a charity appeal. It is a call for justice, accountability, restoration, and ecological survival — written in clear language so that young community rights defenders can understand the history, know their rights, and organise effectively.
“Because our land and water are our life. Because our future depends on justice today. Because our voices must be heard. Because this is not charity — this is justice.”
Download the Manifesto
Get your copy of the Niger Delta Manifesto for Ecological Justice — Youth Edition and share it with your community, classroom, or organisation.
👉 Download the Manifesto (PDF)
For more information, contact SHADEF at info@shadef.org or HOMEF at home@homef.org.