This publication presents five background reviews to understand the developments in oil palm plantations in the Cross River State in Nigeria. It covers topics as the ecological impacts in the landscape, the historical background, the political side, the social impacts and the capacity gaps and needs related to oil palm plantations Tropenbos International commissioned these series of backgrounds reviews under the framework of the Green Livelihoods Alliance. 

Large scale land acquisition is increasing dramatically in Nigeria. Although the act of expanding areas for cultivating food crops and fuels presents development opportunities, Godwin Uyi Ojo, Executive Director of Friends of the Earth Nigeria, argued that the negative impacts far outweigh any advantages as ‘land grabbing’ is causing serious environmental and social impacts to the land and the people living on it. The issue is deeply controversial due to the fact that it is driven by monetary benefits and conducted without obtaining prior and informed consent from local communities.

The worsening economic downturn and the food deficit have helped to make to Nigeria more dependent on external investment in large scale agribusiness. But the products produced eventually end up in international markets and therefore “enrich not Africans predominantly, but groups and individuals who operate to Africa’s impoverishment” (Nkrumah, 1965). The situation is further exacerbated due to unexpected repercussions of the EU biofuel policy, which unintentionally promotes the cultivation of palm oil and other biofuels, taking away communal land rights.

European-owned plantation companies are expanding their businesses tremendously in Nigeria without caring much about the consequences. Wilmar PZ in Cross River state and Okomu Oil Palm Company in Edo state both failed to conduct mandatory environmental impact assessment before expansion, required for community consent and to fulfil corporate social responsibility commitments as promised. Also, the potential for economic gains, weak governance structure and poor land tenure system have pushed federal and state governments to be non-compliant of current environmental laws and to collude with large-scale plantation companies in shady negotiations. As a result, land grabbing expansion appears unstoppable and the threats that it is posing to the Nigerian environment and people are becoming ever more severe.

In this context, it is crucial to recognize local communities as important partners in the development process, who have the rights to be involved, to be consulted, and to make decisions. There is also a strong need to put in place transparency and accountability measures so that the local people are not excluded and that corporate social responsibility is not a hoax. After all, “the best form of development is to place development parameters in the hands of the target beneficiaries”, said Ojo. 

A conducive environment and government interest are factors that have contributed to the resurgence of the oil palm industry in Nigeria, though “cycles of tragedy [are] often caught up with those who learnt nothing from previous occurrences”, said Sylvester Akhaine from Lagos State University. The absence of clear policy on environment and human security issues in agricultural regulations of central authorities and state governments in relation to oil palm production, has led to negative impacts on land and people.

This analysis of colonial experience in oil palm trade revealed an intriguing concern regarding displacement of local communities, by showing a willingness to avoid the forceful removal of people from their land. However, post-colonial governments were drawn by the economic benefits of oil palm production and neglected to consider the impact on indigenous people and ecosystems they lived in. Special attention was raised by civil society organisations (CSOs) and NGOs on oppressive processes of land acquisition and shady negotiations between oil palm companies and governments, along with unfair labour practices imposed on local people.

In Cross River State, the richest rainforest region in Nigeria, this policy review showed that there are no clear governance guidelines in the oil palm sector, apart from expanding production to generate more resources. At federal level, the Presidential Initiative for Vegetable Oil Development (VODEP) policy and Agriculture Transformation Agenda (ATA) programme indicated poor continuity due to the speed of policy transition. Cross River State government is inclined to sacrifice its well-crafted poverty alleviation programmes like Cross River Agricultural and Rural Empowerment Scheme (CARES), to support multinational oil palm companies who are in a scramble for the oil palm belt. Other legal instruments include the Land Use Act (1978), the Environmental Impact Assessment Act (1992), and Cross River State Forestry Commission Law No.3 (2010) but which are now at variance with agribusiness that can explain the dispute between companies like PZ Wilmar and local communities.

The missing link between policy, the need for investment and the wellbeing of the forest people in the state, therefore, calls for the necessity to mainstream environment and human security issues in memorandums of understanding between government and oil palm companies, and to advocate with governments so they appreciate the centrality of people in the policy process. 

“In the competition between forest conservation and oil palm plantation expansion in Nigeria, the losers appear to be indigenous communities” said Abiodun Baiyewu-Teru, Country Director of Global Rights Nigeria. It is evident that the negative impacts of oil palm production on local people, particularly women and children, far outweigh the benefits that come with it.

The rich biodiversity of Nigeria once vast forests is fast disappearing due largely to the development of oil palm plantations. While the federal and state governments appear interested in conserving remaining rainforest areas, they also desperately want to boost the economic gains for the state and therefore, end up between two conflicting priorities - conservation and agricultural development. However, the human factor seems to be forgotten in the process, as both companies and governments fail to engage with communities in obtaining their free, prior and informed consent, by only consulting community chiefs rather than a larger and more democratic representation of the entire community. In addition, oil palm companies often ignore compulsory environmental and social impact assessments, which are explicitly required by law.

Among those who suffer most from negative impacts, Baiyewu emphasized that they are mostly indigenous peoples and the most vulnerable, including women and children. Gender inequality remains an issue, and land grabbing takes away women’s rights to be consulted and compensated. Barred from accessing forest resources, women are less able to practice subsistence farming and meet the nutritional needs of their families. Finding another occupation is a challenge for them and even when they are recruited for work in plantations, they earn much less than when managing their own smallholder farmlands. As a result, this deepens women’s dependence on men and broadens the gender gap. Children may then be withdrawn from school, engaged in child labour and suffer malnutrition. Moreover, environmental shifts may lead to increased labour, reduced productivity and health and human wellbeing issues.

“At the heart of law, development, governance and business lies people and communities”, noted Baiyewu. It is thus important that the government takes this into account, to prevent growing negative impacts of oil palm plantations by prioritizing the rights and welfare of its people in the quest for economic development.  

More than 90% of the Nigerian landscape has been cleared for agriculture, leading to negative social and environmental impacts. Although indigenous communities, with the help of civil society organisations (CSOs), NGOs and academia have been making major efforts in calling attention to the issue, they are still struggling to have their voices heard due to a significant lack of capacity and resources for advocacy purpose, according to Fidelis Allen, Acting Director of Centre for Conflict and Gender Studies, Nigeria.

In Cross River State, land and the people are facing serious threats from land grabbing, deforestation and biodiversity loss. The intensity of conflict between communities and CSOs on the one hand and oil palm companies and the state government on the other hand has escalated dramatically. The main reasons are insufficient consultation with local people, violation of extant laws and policies, and destruction of high conservation value forest areas. It can be clearly seen that improper governance of the oil palm industry, with corporations increasingly searching for investment opportunities to expand their landholdings in Nigeria, is happening at the expense of indigenous communities.

In the midst of this conflict, CSOs and academia have been actively working together to help communities and bring the issues into the limelight. However, their efforts still remain rudimentary due to several obstacles. Research is a key need, but they lack in-house research capacity and financial resources to fill all of the gaps in required knowledge, and to engage researchers on a regular basis. In addition, questions and fears of what the industry would do to local farming populations and their forests in Nigeria have received only limited academic attention to date. Community leaders also do not have adequate advocacy skills and gender and conflict sensitivities have not yet received sufficient attention.

Allen therefore recommends that NGOs, CSOs and academia establish a coalition specifically for research, advocacy and capacity building purposes. Other crucial actions that are also needed are to develop a mechanism for sharing analysis and actions on regular basis, and to reduce gender inequality and avoid physical violence in the struggle for best practices in large scale agriculture sector.