SDN Reports

Biannual Progress Report January-June 2022 In 2020, Stakeholder Democracy Network (SDN) and Centre for Environment, Human Rights and Development (CEHRD) commenced the Independent Civil Society Monitoring of the Ogoniland Cleanup project with support from the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and working in partnership with a range of civil society ...

SDN has worked with SOAS University of London (UK) to help map links between artisanal oil refining and other livelihoods, and highlight the ‘benefits’ or incentive structures of those involved in this informal economy. Artisanal oil refining in the Niger Delta is a damaging activity that has caused pollution and ...

Biannual progress report July–December 2021 In 2020, Stakeholder Democracy Network (SDN) and Centre for Environment, Human Rights and Development (CEHRD) commenced the Independent Civil Society Monitoring of the Ogoniland Cleanup project with support from the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and working in partnership with a range of civil society ...

This report explores the trends, drivers, and implications of international oil companies (IOCs) selling off assets to Nigerian domestic oil companies (DOCs). Our analysis of investment trends illustrates that divestments have been ongoing for decades, but the rate is rapidly accelerating. For the first time since production began sixty years ...

Biannual progress report January–June 2021 In 2020, Stakeholder Democracy Network (SDN) and Centre for Environment, Human Rights and Development (CEHRD) commenced the Independent Civil Society Monitoring of the Ogoniland Cleanup project with support from the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and working in partnership with a range of civil society ...

Untangling the dependencies that prevent it ending Summary Initiated in June 2009, the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) has become an enduring institution. Initially it was conceived as a short-term mechanism for de-escalating and defusing the militant insurgency that destabilised the oil-rich Niger Delta over the preceding decade, and was also ...

Summary This report is based on research in Rivers State, Nigeria, on the status of civic space, and the implications for individuals and organisations seeking to defend and expand civil and political rights. This research was undertaken as part of a wider project to increase collaboration between different civil society ...

A review of 2017-2020 Summary This report summarises key findings from a series of research surveys conducted by Stakeholder Democracy Network (SDN) between September 2017 and January 2020. These surveys were carried out in the Niger Delta states of Bayelsa, Delta, and Rivers. The purpose of this research was to: ...

April 2019–September 2019 Summary This report summarises the results of a public perception survey (PPS) carried out by Stakeholder Democracy Network (SDN) in three Niger Delta States – Bayelsa, Delta and Rivers. The purpose of the PPS is to understand local-level concerns about security in the region, and priorities for ...

April 2019–September 2019 Summary This report summarises the results of a public perception survey (PPS) carried out by Stakeholder Democracy Network (SDN) in three Niger Delta States—Bayelsa, Delta and Rivers. The purpose of the PPS is to understand local-level concerns about security in the region, and priorities for addressing security-related ...

How can financial transparency initiatives help ensure a fair deal for communities in the Niger Delta? Summary Improvements to financial transparency in the oil and gas sector are particularly helpful in Nigeria, a country with a large oil industry based in the Niger Delta, but little transparency in how revenues ...

Summary This report provides a comparative assessment of the environmental performance of 43 oil companies operating in Nigeria in 2018. This is the first environmental performance index (the Index) by SDN. It is based on the amount of oil spilled and gas flared (burnt off) by each company in the ...

Summary The history of oil pollution in Nigeria is long and traumatic. The Nigerian oil industry, which has produced and exported high quality crude for over 50 years, drives the Nigerian economy. The inhabitants of the Niger Delta, the country’s principal oil-producing region, have suffered the impact of oil spills ...

Summary This report outlines key actions that would contribute to making the oil spill compensation system in Nigeria fairer and more transparent for all. It is based on analysis of the challenges with the compensation system identified in the SDN research report The Nigerian oil spill compensation system: obstacles and ...

An analysis of official and unofficial petroleum products in the Niger Delta Summary This report compares differences in the standards of, and emissions from, official fuels in licensed filling stations, and unofficial fuels produced by artisanal oil refineries across Bayelsa and Rivers states.
The analysis aims to improve upon ...

Summary A combination of intimidation, inducement, and violence spanning the electoral period damaged the freedom, fairness, and credibility of the 2019 Governorship election in Bayelsa State. However, most voters, INEC officials, security services, and civil society organisations are to be commended for their efforts to maintain a peaceful election. Prior ...

For over 15 years, SDN has worked with communities and stakeholders in the Niger Delta, tackling issues related to the impact of the oil and gas sector on the region. During this time, we have investigated security issues in the region relating to political unrest—in particular, around elections, militancy (including ...

October 2018-March 2019 Summary This report presents the findings of the latest public perceptions survey (PPS), carried out by SDN in three Niger Delta states—Bayelsa, Delta, and Rivers. The purpose of the PPS is to understand local-level concerns about security in the region, and priorities for addressing security-related issues. The ...

Report summary This report assesses the status and trend of women’s participation in politics as citizens and as holders of political positions in the Niger Delta. It is based on research undertaken in three states—Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa and Rivers—as part of the More Women in Governance project, led by Stakeholder ...

A civil society report on the conduct of the Nigerian elections In early 2019, Nigeria held its sixth cycle of elections since its restoration of democracy in 1999. This included two main sets of elections: Presidential and National Assembly polls, in February (after a week-long postponement, announced during the ...

March 2018 - September 2018 Summary This report presents the results of a public perceptions survey, carried out by Stakeholder Democracy Network (SDN) in Bayelsa, Delta, and Rivers states. It focuses on citizens’ perceptions of the current security situation in the Niger Delta, and views on the actors and interventions ...

October 2017 - March 2018 Summary This report presents the results of a public perceptions survey, carried out by SDN in Bayelsa, Delta, and Rivers states. It focuses on citizens’ perceptions of the current security situation in the Niger Delta, and views on the actors and interventions aiming to address ...

Reducing 2019 election risks The 2019 Nigerian elections are now less than three months away. Given the relative success of the 2015 elections – which, although flawed, saw an incumbent president relinquish power for the first time since Nigeria’s return to democracy in 1999 – they have the potential ...

This report calls for an alternative approach to tackle artisanal oil refining in the Niger Delta, based on an analysis of how the improvised artisanal oil refining value chain has adapted and changed in Bayelsa and Rivers states over the past five years. This quantitative and qualitative research is based ...

Nigeria’s power sector is failing. After $2 billion was spent on the nationalised National Electric Power Authority (NEPA) in the 1980s and 1990s, the Authority had an all-time low 1,700 MW of power capacity. This was hopelessly inadequate to meet the growing needs of the country. It was also clear ...

Summary This report presents the results of a public perceptions survey, carried out by SDN in Bayelsa, Delta and Rivers states. It focuses on citizens’ perceptions of the current security situation in the Niger Delta, and views on the actors and interventions aiming to address the problem of instability and ...

BEDC Electricity Corruption Perception Index 2017 4 This Corruption Perception Index (CPI) forms part of SDN’s ‘‘Promoting Accountability in the Electricity Sector’’ project. Funded by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the project is designed to help reduce corruption in the electricity sector, in particular at the distribution ...

Research from a survey conducted for customers in selected Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) business districts has found widespread inadequacy in the reliability of the electricity supply to households and businesses in the area. Insufficient electricity supply stunts the growth of micro, small and medium enterprises, limiting the creation of ...

Between the years 2000 – 2005, Nigeria lost around 55% of its’ primary forests, causing the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) to record it as having the highest rate of deforestation in the world. Nigeria has been facing mass deforestation ever since due to both legal and illegal timber trade ...

The Niger Delta region fuels Nigeria’s economy, accounting for 95 per cent of Nigeria’s export earnings and over 80 per cent of the federal government’s revenue. Yet it remains one of the poorest parts of the country. Its considerable potential for socio-economic development has been hampered by a lack of access ...

Decommissioning is the process whereby abandoned oil and gas fields are made safe and the land or sea is restored as far as possible to their original state. This practice is of utmost importance, as failure to mitigate the risk of negative environmental, social and economic impacts following the closures ...

Comparative analysis of the forms, data and related processes of the Joint Investigation Visit (JIV) and suggestions on how these could be improved. A Joint Investigation Visit (JIV) is a visit to oil spill sites usually carried out within two weeks of an onshore oil spill in Nigeria. It is ...

Nigeria is experiencing a national environmental emergency. Desertification in the North and rising sea levels in the South have led to higher than usual rates of migration, pressure on a weak supply chain for resources, and an additional strain on service provision in Nigeria’s major cities. The Intergovernmental Panel on ...

Pipeline vandalism cost the Nigerian Government, oil-companies and communities an estimated $14bn dollars in 2014. The failure of the Nigerian state to provide basic public services and security in the Niger Delta has resulted in a significant breakdown of the social contract. In the void that remains, international and national oil companies ...

According to our independent analysis based on average domestic fuel consumption, subsidies claimed by fuel marketers cost Nigeria $2.9bn over the last year. This is a 400% increase since 2007 and a sum equivalent to 13% of the Federal Budget, passed in April 2015. Whatever strategy President Buhari chooses to address this ...

The new Federal Government administration has not yet articulated its vision for the Niger Delta. As a result, the leaders in the region are concerned that the pledges for national development may not be inclusive. If these concerns are not addressed through a comprehensive and holistic approach, in the next 6 ...

The Niger Delta legacy engagement set out to reduce acts of violence and increase the likelihood for a more peaceful future in the region. A tangled web of factors underlie the Niger Delta’s propensity for violence. Poor governance, inescapable poverty, environmental degradation and inadequate public services have all contributed ...

The Sustainable Utilisation of Nigeria’s Gas and Renewable Energy Resources (SUNGAS) project is an EC-funded project with the aim to reduce poverty and support socio-economic development in the Niger Delta by promoting decentralised access to sustainable modern energy services. SDN’s element of the project aimed at developing community-based energy initiatives ...

This is a narrative report and recommendations from the event entitled ‘improving the JIV’ which took place in Port Harcourt on 27th November 2014. This report documents the findings of the various discussions around the JIV (Joint Investigation Visits that occur following oil spills in Nigeria), and most importantly documents ...

SDN initially distributed portable solar lanterns to urban and semi urban communities in Rivers State in order to better meet the decentralised energy needs of vulnerable groups. The Solar Portable Lighting Project sells individual renewable lights directly into communities through a local Community Distributor. Local entrepreneurs leverage upon existing relationships in ...

This report addresses the complexity of civil litigation for compensation for oil pollution damage in the Niger Delta, and calls for the creation of a fairer and more consistent system of defining liability and payment in Nigeria. The document outlines the development of international compensation before analysing international actions through ...

This report, which presents research on ‘New Compensation Rates and Processes in Nigeria’, was facilitated by Stakeholder Democracy Network (SDN) with funding from the Dutch Ministry. An expert team of researchers and valuers undertook the study to identify a fair and comprehensive ‘oil spill rates mechanism’ that captures the immediate ...

This document offers policy recommendation for the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) in Nigeria. With examples from across the world, this paper outlines the extent to which global regulation and pollution control of the oil industry has evolved over time, largely propelled by serious accidents. These recommendation include the separation of ...

The Niger Delta was violently thrust on the attention of the world during its 2005 -2009 militancy crisis. This conflict reduced oil production by two thirds costing Nigeria over $15 billion a year in lost revenue. Weekly kidnappings, pipeline attacks and militarisation of the region made for newsworthy stories, whilst ...

"The government and oil companies are collecting our oil, and we don't have jobs, no money, so we have to collect the oil and refine our own". Local Oil Refiner SDN latest report analyses the massive growth in artisanal oil refining in the Niger Delta. The report explains for the ...