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$6bn needed to meet 2025 water target, says report

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$6bn needed to meet 2025 water target, says report

Nigeria needs to invest about $600 million yearly in the water supply sector over the next 10 years if it hopes to achieve universal coverage of safe drinking water supply by 2025, a recently published report by World Bank Water and Sanitation Programme (WSP) has said.

The report says that, to achieve universal water supply, the country needs to invest about $6 billion within the next 10 years in the sector
The report says that, to achieve universal water supply, the country needs to invest about $6 billion within the next 10 years in the sector

Titled “State Water Agencies in Nigeria: A Performance Assessment”, the WSP report published in conjunction with Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Water Resources, assessed 35 out of the 37 urban state water agencies in Nigeria, based on performance data from the International Bench Marking Network for water and sanitation utilities, tariffs levels and structures, financing mechanisms, and governance.

The report, analysed by eWASH, identified challenges affecting the operational performances of Nigeria’s urban water agencies as accelerated urbanisation; lack of investments and investment projects; institutional limitations including some that prevented successful execution of an investment projects portfolio to expand and guarantee water supply for all; and fiscal constraints in a sector where incomplete cost recovery is the norm.

Arguing that inadequate financial investments limits the capacity of state water activities to provide efficient market and sustainable water services, the report pointed out that only 17 out of 35 state water agencies in Nigeria invested more than $10 million in the urban water supply sector between 2005-2015, while another eight state water agencies mostly in the South East had no investments since they were created in 1991.

The current rate of investment $70 to $80 million a year is not enough to maintain sector performance, the report declares, adding that, to achieve universal water supply, the country needs to invest about $6 billion within the next 10 years in the water sector. The report also advocated for the establishment of a National Water Fund to develop a pipeline of investment projects.

The report also found out that state water agencies, statutorily responsible for providing urban water services, were only able to deliver drinking water services to only a fraction less, than 37% of the population in 2013.

“Urban water supply is struggling to cope with the continuing urbanisation of Nigeria, it is imperative to expand the service by constructing 20 to 30 water treatment plants to guarantee needed volume and at least 100,000 kilometres of additional mains to distribute water to consumers,” stresses the report.

The report makes the following recommendations, which are designed to address the operational challenges facing state water agencies in Nigeria:

  • Establishment of a baseline and monitoring and evaluation mechanism in the water sector to develop preferred investment programs based on objective information and performance indicators.
  • Corporatisation of state water agencies, and ensuring their technical and financial operations are made more transparent.
  • Establishment of an efficient and equitable tariff policy at national and state levels.
  • Metering of both water production and consumption by all state water agencies to ensure accurate billing, cost accounting, water conservation and demand management.
  • Customers should be considered potential sources of revenues for water services rendered.
  • State Water Agencies should prepare short term financing portfolios and a pipeline of projects.
  • A National Water Fund to develop a pipeline of investment projects, based on reported performance information, objective needs, and guarantees from the state, that built infrastructure will be properly financed, operated and maintained.
  • The Water Investment Mobilisation and Application Guidelines should be reviewed and its applicability evaluated.

By Babatope Babalobi (eWash)

Paris Agreement: Peru ratifies, Nigeria prepares to sign

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Paris Agreement: Peru ratifies, Nigeria prepares to sign

About three months after it signed the Paris Agreement on 22 April 2016, Peru last Monday (25 July 2016) deposited its instrument of ratification of the climate pact with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

Patricia Espinosa, executive secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
Patricia Espinosa, executive secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)

Peru, which hosted the 20th Session of the Conference of the Parties (COP20) to the UNFCCC in its capital city of Lima in December 2014, becomes the 20th state to deposit its instrument of ratification.

This is coming as Nigeria plans to formally sign the global treaty in a couple of months. Indications are that President Muhammadu Buhari, while attending the 71st Regular Session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA71) at the UN Headquarters in September, will sign the agreement.

President Buhari, it was gathered, will also speak at the 5th anniversary event of the Open Government Partnership at the UNGA17 on September 20, 2016.

Nigeria was not among the over 155 listed countries that signed the Paris Agreement at a high-level ceremony at the United Nations headquarters in New York on Friday (22 April, 2016), on Mother Earth Day. Officials attributed this to the fact that an internal stakeholder consultation process needed to be conducted before an endorsement of the climate pact.

At the 21st Session of the Conference of the Parties (COP21) held in Paris, France, the Parties adopted the Paris Climate Change Agreement under the UNFCCC.

The Agreement was opened for signature on 22 April 2016 at a high-level signature ceremony convened by the Secretary General in New York. At that ceremony, 174 States and the European Union signed the agreement and 15 States also deposited their instruments of ratification.

As of 25 July 2016, there are 178 signatories to the Paris Agreement.  Of these, 20 States have also deposited their instruments of ratification, acceptance or approval accounting in total for 0.40 % of the total global greenhouse gas emissions.

The Agreement shall enter into force on the 13th day after the date on which at least 55 Parties to the Convention, accounting in total for at least an estimated 55 % of the total global greenhouse gas emissions, have deposited their instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession with the Depositary.

Authoritative information on the status of the Paris Agreement, including information on signatories to the Agreement, ratification and entry into force, is provided by the Depositary, through the United Nations Treaty Collection website can be accessed here as well as here.

By Michael Simire

Government raises Council, Board for Ogoniland clean-up

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Government raises Council, Board for Ogoniland clean-up

“The choice is for you to keep your environment clean and nurture the Niger Delta back to its lost glory. The beginning of this clean-up exercise is clear evidence that Ken Saro Wiwa and other sons of Ogoniland who fought hard for environmental justice did not fight in vain. Let this mark the beginning of the restoration not just of the environment of Ogoniland, but of peace and prosperity to the great land and people of Ogoniland.”

President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria
President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria

Those were President Muhammadu Buhari’s inspiring lines as he launched the implementation of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Report on Ogoniland on June 2, 2016 in Bodo, Rivers State.

As a follow-up to the launch, President Buhari has raised and approved the composition of the Governing Council and Board of Trustees, described as key elements of the governance structure required for the Clean up of Ogoniland.

This, according to the Federal Ministry of Environment, is in line with Mr. President’s promise to implement the UNEP Report. But officials are keeping the composition of the Council and Board close to their chests.

However, Minister of Environment, Amina Mohammed, was quoted in a statement at the weekend as saying that President Buhari has endorsed the inauguration of a 13-person Governing Council and a 10-person Board of Trustees (BOT). This governance structure, it was gathered, ensures inclusiveness, accountability, transparency and sustainability of the Clean up exercise.

Addressing the concerns raised by Nigerians about the perceived slow pace of work, the minister said, “Nigerians have a right to voice their concerns. We have responsibility to deliver. The launch was the first step in a 30-year journey. We continue to made strides toward implementation.

“We ask for patience as we lay solid foundations for the clean up. The context is complex and stakeholders are diverse. Everyone must be taken along. President Buhari remains steadfast in his conviction to see Ogoniland and other parts of the Niger Delta cleaned up. My team at the Federal Ministry of Environment is actively working collaboratively with Ministries of Petroleum Resources, Niger Delta, NDDC and key stakeholders to see that the promise of His Excellency is kept and we stay clean after the clean up.”

The minister reiterated the need to see the clean up as a collective responsibility and urged all the Niger Delta communities especially the Ogonis to support the remediation and restoration efforts of the government.

The clean up operation – which the UNEP report said could be the “most wide-ranging and long term oil clean-up exercise” – aims to restore drinking water, soil, creeks and important ecosystems such as mangroves. The UN report estimated that the clean up of Ogoniland could take up to 30 years while the initial remediation will take five years and the restoration another 25 years.

G20 finance ministers pledge to scale up green finance

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G20 finance ministers pledge to scale up green finance

G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors held their third meeting on July 23-24 in Chengdu, and issued the final Communiqué before this year’s G20 Summit in Hangzhou, emphasising the development of green finance and welcoming voluntary options developed by the G20 Green Finance Study Group (GFSG).

Participants at the meeting. Photo credit: Xinhua
Participants at the meeting. Photo credit: Xinhua

This year, green finance was incorporated for first time into the G20 agenda. At the initiative of the Chinese G20 presidency, the G20 established the GFSG, co-chaired by China and the United Kingdom with support from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) as secretariat.

More than 80 participants from all G20 members, as well as a number of invited countries and six international organisations, actively participated in the GFSG. Over the past six months, the GFSG hosted four core meetings, developed the G20 Green Finance Synthesis Report and submitted it to the Third Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting held recently in Chengdu. The Synthesis Report comprehensively examines the necessity and challenges of developing green finance globally. It also provides seven voluntary options to overcome these challenges facing green finance development.

The G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting Communiqué states:

“We recognise that, in order to support environmentally sustainable growth globally, it is necessary to scale-up green financing. We welcome the G20 Green Finance Synthesis Report submitted by the Green Finance Study Group (GFSG), and welcome the voluntary options developed by the GFSG to enhance the ability of the financial system to mobilise private capital for green investment. In particular, we believe that efforts could be made to provide clear strategic policy signals and frameworks, promote voluntary principles for green finance, expand learning networks for capacity building, support the development of local green bond markets, promote international collaboration to facilitate cross-border investment in green bonds, encourage and facilitate knowledge sharing on environmental and financial risks, and improve the measurement of green finance activities and their impacts.”

Commenting on the report, Ma Jun, Chief Economist of the People’s Bank of China, said: “Promoting the consensus of developing green finance internationally is a key objective of the G20 GFSG. The statements in the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting Communiqué demonstrate that major countries’ financial leaders have realised the necessity and feasibility of developing green finance through various financial instruments, policies, and mechanisms.”

“The Green Finance Study Group has highlighted how important and possible it is for the private sector to work with public bodies in creating the enabling conditions to mobilise green finance,” said Michael Sheren, co-Chair, Green Finance Study Group; Senior Advisor, Bank of England.

Simon Zadek, Co-director of the UNEP Inquiry and lead for UNEP for the GFSG secretariat, added that establishing and co-chairing the G20 GFSG underlines China’s global influence in green finance. “By taking green finance to the G20, China has used its presidency to inspire many countries and financial institutions around the world to take notice of the importance of this agenda,” he said.

China’s pursuit of green finance has been attracting global attention in recent years. Green credit in China now makes up 10 per cent of the balance of total loans and the country is now home to the world’s largest green bond market. China is also one of just three countries that issued “Green Credit Definitions” and was the first country that officially released its “Green Bond Directives” and Green Bond Catalogue.

Elsewhere, countries including Brazil, Indonesia, Kenya, and Sweden are now advancing green finance plans and practices while financial centres – such as Hong Kong, London, Singapore and Switzerland – are entering a “race to the top” by viewing green finance as a source of competitiveness.

Fossil fuel-free plane completes round-the-world trip

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Fossil fuel-free plane completes round-the-world trip

Solar Impulse, a zero-fuel aircraft powered entirely by the sun, has safely landed in Abu Dhabi, thereby completing a 40,000 kilometer trip around the world.

Solar Impulse prepares to land in San Francisco after a three-day Pacific Ocean crossing
Solar Impulse prepares to land in San Francisco after a three-day Pacific Ocean crossing

The flight was designed to demonstrate the potential of solar energy to drastically reduce global greenhouse gas emissions. The aircraft took off for the first leg of its current voyage last year, in December, just one day before the signing of the historic Paris Climate Change Agreement, to lend support to global efforts to combat climate change.

During the last leg of the journey, from Cairo to Abu Dhabi, UNFCCC Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa spoke with Bertrand Piccard, the Swiss pilot at the controls of the plane.

She said: “It is very inspiring what you are undertaking, showing the world that implementing the decisions taken under the Paris Agreement is possible. You are demonstrating that having passion and dedication in this area is the right thing to do and that it pays off and can be translated into very meaningful results. We sometimes forget how innovations took place in the past and how the world has changed. We take for granted many of the technologies and the possibilities that we have today. But you are exactly doing that, you are breaking new ground and showing that it’s possible to do things in a different way. And you are showing what solar energy can do to get rid of the use of fossil fuels that are causing so much damage to our environment.”

Responding to Patricia Espinosa, explorer Betrand Piccard said: “My personal impression is that most of the industry leaders are ready for the change because they understand that it’s a question of investment, a question of development, and profits. They’re thinking about that for new products. But the governments, on a national level, they’re so afraid of changing. And I think, for me it’s powerful to try to show them that it is in their advantage – for their GDP, for job creation, for the development of their economy.”

Solar Impulse gets its energy from 17,000 photovoltaic cells that cover the top surfaces of the craft. These cells power propellers during the day, but also charge batteries that the vehicle’s motors can then use during the night. The plane, which has the wing span of a Boeing 747 but only weighs as much as a passenger car, is alternatively piloted by Swiss adventurers and entrepreneurs Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg.

Images: Legislative roundtable on climate change

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Images: Legislative roundtable on climate change

In the bid to foster deeper understanding of Nigeria’s commitment to the Paris Agreement while promoting legislative ownership of the nation’s climate change agenda, the Ministers of Environment, officials of the Climate Change Department of the Federal Ministry of Environment as well as representatives of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) on Tuesday in Abuja met with lawmakers in the House of Representatives and the Senate.

Themed: “Legislative Agenda to enhance Nigeria’s Climate Resilience: Developing an efficient Oversight Framework for Resource Governance (Green Economy),” the daylong forum was aimed at, among other objectives, equipping the legislature with the requisite knowledge to make laws that will facilitate the successful implementation of, for instance, the nation’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).

Sam Onuigbo (Chairman, House Committee on Climate Change) (left) with Dr. Takwa Zebulon (representative of UNDP Country Director)
Sam Onuigbo (Chairman, House Committee on Climate Change) (left) with Dr. Takwa Zebulon (representative of UNDP Country Director)
Senator Alhaji Bukar AbbaIbrahim (Chairman, Senate Committee on Ecology) (left) with Sam Onuigbo (Chairman, House Committee on Climate Change)
Senator Alhaji Bukar AbbaIbrahim (Chairman, Senate Committee on Ecology) (left) with Sam Onuigbo (Chairman, House Committee on Climate Change)
Amina J. Mohammed (Environment Minister) (left) with Sam Onuigbo (Chairman, House Committee on Climate Change)
Amina J. Mohammed (Environment Minister) (left) with Sam Onuigbo (Chairman, House Committee on Climate Change)
Ibrahim Usman Jibril (Environment Minister of State) (left) with Amina J. Mohammed (Minister of Environment (middle) and a ministry official
Ibrahim Usman Jibril (Environment Minister of State) (left) with Amina J. Mohammed (Minister of Environment (middle) and a ministry official
Dr. Bukar Hassan (Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Environment) (left)
Dr. Bukar Hassan (Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Environment) (left)
Dr Peter Tarfa (Director, Department of Climate Change in the Federal Ministry of Environment) (left) with Huzi Mshelia
Dr Peter Tarfa (Director, Department of Climate Change in the Federal Ministry of Environment) (left) with Huzi Mshelia

 

How Ogoni pollution impoverished indegenes

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How Ogoni pollution impoverished indegenes

Poverty, destitution and deprivation prevalent in Ogoniland have been linked with the soil, air and water pollution that the people of the area have over the decades been exposed to.

Oil pollution in the Niger Delta has largely contributed to the destruction of the area's biodiversity and to unprecedented levels of deprivation. Photo credit: longbaby.com
Oil pollution in the Niger Delta has largely contributed to the destruction of the area’s biodiversity and to unprecedented levels of deprivation. Photo credit: longbaby.com

This was the submission of participants at the close of a consultative meeting/training on Tuesday on the planned clean-up of polluted sites in Ogoni, where they noted that pollution and land degradation have adversely affected crop yield for farmers, fish yield for fisher folks and generally reduced the people’s ability to generate income and provide for their wellbeing. This fact, they added, exposed the community to unprecedented levels of deprivation.

The meeting also noted that air, soil and water pollution in Ogoniland has manifested in serious health problems which the people have had to deal with for many years. Some of these challenges, ranging from various form of respiratory disorders, heart deficiencies, lung related illnesses, problems with the outer epidermis, reproductive disorders including stillbirths and foetal malformation, have not been appropriately studied or documented in any detailed manner.

On the implementation of the clean-up, the consultative meeting noted that the Federal Government has demonstrated significant commitment in commencing the clean-up of Ogoniland in response to the recommendations of the UNEP (United Nations Environment Programme) Report. Participants, however, expressed worry that there were many cases of ongoing pollution in Ogoniland, thus making the proposed clean-up rather complicated.

The consultative meeting also noted that while the government has held several meetings with various interest groups on the clean-up process, the process of consultation still requires further work.

It noted that the multifarious expectations from the clean-up process is evidence that many people expect that process to become something it isn’t, and that this could lead to a problem of unrealised expectations, which could seriously undermine the process.

Similarly, the meeting noted that structures have not been instituted which makes the people part of the process as monitors of milestones and standards as well as actual agents of the clean-up. The meeting expressed fear that if this was not done, the type of community “buy-in” and “ownership” which is required for a smooth implementation process might be lost.

Based on the sentiments expressed, the consultative meeting concluded thus:

  • Residents of pollution impacted sites in Ogoniland should immediately be provided with alternative source of drinking water in line with the emergency measures recommended by UNEP. The people are said to be using and drinking water from contaminated sources since 2011 after the UNEP Report was made public.
  • All ongoing sources of pollution in Ogoniland should immediately be brought to an end. These include active bunkering activities which continues unabated in the Ogoni area; as well as the practice by the Military Joint Task Force of setting tankers impounded with stolen petroleum products on fire. The latter is an emerging major source of air and soil pollution with immediate devastating health impacts.
  • Given the fact that pollution has continued five years after UNEP released its report, it is recommended that the report be updated to reflect current realities. It is believed that the levels of pollution recorded between 2011 and 2016 may have changed significantly, necessitating a review of the report to establish new and more realistic baselines.
  • A comprehensive health impact assessment which should detail the health impacts of pollution on people who reside in pollution impacted sites should be carried out. This process will be a first step towards documenting the known and unknown health impacts of hydrocarbon pollution and planning remedial actions.
  • The process of consultation and sensitisation should be intensified and carried on throughout the stages of the clean-up implementation process. This is to ensure that communities understand what each stage entails and what is expected in order to avoid possible confusion and misunderstanding which could result in conflict.
  • In all stages of the lead-up and actual implementation of the clean-up, care must be taken to ensure that the different components of the stages reflect the inclusion of all segments of the society, including consideration for women, youths and people living with disabilities.
  • In planning the clean-up, clear and verifiable milestones should be established and done so in such a way that all stakeholders are able to understand each stage of the milestones and when they have been met. This will ensure an active and healthy feedback cycle with all stakeholders.
  • In establishing milestones, the training of community members to act in different capacities in the clean-up, must be instituted as a critical means of community inclusion. The already established and trained group of Ecological Defenders drawn from the various Ogoni communities should be considered a component of this milestone.
  • In order to ensure that the clean-up activities enjoy the support of all current and future government establishments, an executive Bill proposing the establishing legal frameworks for the structures and funding of the clean-up process should be immediately sent to the National Assembly for consideration.
  • Communities should do everything possible and necessary to create the enabling environment- devoid of rancour and conflict – for the smooth implementation of the recommendation of UNEP.

Organised by the Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF) in collaboration with Ogoni Solidarity Forum, Social Action, Kebetkache Women Development and Resource Centre, Lokiakia Centre and Oilwatch Nigeria, the forum featured environmental monitors, civil society activists, community activists and the media.

Water privatisation isn’t way out, crusaders urge Lagos lawmakers

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Water privatisation isn’t way out, crusaders urge Lagos lawmakers

Civil society, community/faith-based groups, and labour activists numbering over 300 on Wednesday marched on the Lagos State House of Assembly, Secretariat to deliver a petition titled “Privatisation is not solution to Lagos water problem” to the Speaker of the House, Obasa Mudashiru.

The protest march saw activists march through the streets, handing out leaflets and singing solidarity songs
The protest march saw activists march through the streets, handing out leaflets and singing solidarity songs

The protest march, which kicked off at the populated Ikeja Under Bridge, saw activists march through the streets, handing out leaflets and singing solidarity songs as they urged Lagos residents to support the campaign to reject plans by the Lagos State Government to press on with a planned water privatisation.

The petitioners, led by officials the Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth International (ERA/FoEN), included key representatives of Public Services International (PSI), the Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Civil Service, Technical and Recreational Services Employees (AUPCTRE), Peace and Development Project (PEDEP), as well as community representatives from Agege, Shomolu, Epe, Ikorodu and Ketu.

Participating groups urged the Speaker to join them in affirming the fundamental right to clean water and independent self-governance which Lagos citizens deserve, frowning at decades of the World Bank and the private water industry pushing for the PPP model of water privatisation in Lagos and throughout countries of the Global South.

In the petition, they frowned at the decision of the Speaker to back the PPP plans of the Lagos State Government even after the World Bank pulled back from the plan in December 2015.

Akinbode Oluwafemi of ERA/FoEN said: “We urge the Speaker and the entire members of the House to side with the people rather than with promoters of privatisation who put profits before the right to water which is upheld as a human right by the United Nations.”

Comrade Sani Baba, sub-regional secretary of PSI, stated: “PPP promoters in the water sector advance arguments that are tailored to dousing apprehension of workers towards the initiative but time and again, and global experience shows that workers get laid off and rate hikes follow. The Lagos House of Assembly should reject this initiative because that is the path this PPP arrangement will follow.”

In the same vein, Comrade Abiodun Bakare, the state secretary, AUPCTRE, said that the Lagos state government must of utmost priority ensure adequate funding for the water sector. This administration must also investigate funding that was expended on expansion of water infrastructure by the immediate past Group Managing Director of LSWC.”

At the end of the protest march, the group delivered a petition demanding among others, that the

Speaker use his good office to ensure the lawmakers make laws for the benefit of all Lagos residents and not a few privileged corporations. They urged the House to:

  1. Reject all forms of water privatisation and commodification.
  2. Revise all water sector laws that promotes PPP
  3. Make adequate budgetary allocations to the water sector
  4. Fully uphold the human right to water as an obligation of the government, representing the people.
  5. Integrate broad public participation in developing plans to achieve universal access to clean water.
  6. Reject contracts designed by, involving, or influenced by the IFC, which operates to maximise private profit.
  7. Disclose all IFC and World Bank activity and discussions with Lagos government officials regarding water, including formal and informal advisory roles.
  8. Build the political will to prioritise water for the people, therefore leading to a comprehensive plan that invests in the water infrastructure necessary to provide universal water access, which will create jobs, improve public health, and invigorate the Lagos economy.

The Speaker was personally urged to:

  1. Make a public statement informing his constituents about his commitment to protect Lagos water from PPP water privatisation scheme
  2. Propose and develop a comprehensive plan for achieving universal access to clean water in the state/FoEN

Laura Zuñiga, slain Berta Cáceres’ daughter, demands justice

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Laura Zuñiga, slain Berta Cáceres’ daughter, demands justice

Daughter of slain Honduran Indigenous activist Berta Cáceres joins rally against Trans-Pacific Partnership at the DNC Philadelphia

Laura Zuñiga Cáceres. Photo credit: nodal.am
Laura Zuñiga Cáceres. Photo credit: nodal.am

Laura Zuñiga Cáceres arrived in Philadelphia this weekend on a bus full of multiracial organisers from across the US who have been on the road with the It Takes Roots to Change the System People’s Caravan from Cleveland to Philadelphia, demanding justice for her mother, Berta Cáceres.

Berta Cáceres, a Lenca woman, was one of the leading organisers for indigenous land rights in Honduras. Internationally recognised for her human rights work, Cáceres won the renowned Goldman Environmental Award in 2015 for her leadership in the campaign to stop one of Central America’s biggest hydropower projects, the Agua Zarca cascade of four giant dams in the Gualcarque River basin. On March 2, 2016, Berta Cáceres’s life was taken from her and those who loved her when armed gunmen stormed into her home and shot her.

“We know very well the impacts that free trade agreements have had on our countries. They give transnational corporations, like the one my mom fought against, the power to protect their profits even if it means passing over the lives of people who defend the water, forest and mother earth from destruction caused by their very own megaprojects,” said Laura.

Honduran prize-winning campaigner Berta Caceres was slain by gunmen on March 3, 2016 weeks after opposing a hydroelectric dam project
Honduran prize-winning campaigner Berta Caceres was slain by gunmen on March 3, 2016 weeks after opposing a hydroelectric dam project

The assassination of Berta Cáceres has become one of the most controversial issues of Secretary Clinton’s campaign because of her support of the military coup in 2009. Organisers on the caravan are calling on Secretary Clinton to take responsibility for the role of the US in supporting the military coup, and to take immediate action to end US military aid to Honduras.

Among the DNC platform committee are House Representatives Keith Ellison (MN), Barbara Lee (CA) and Luis Gutierrez (IL) who are co-sponsors of the Berta Cáceres Human Rights in Honduras Act which calls for an end to US military aid and training to Honduras.

“The case of human rights abuses in Honduras is one of the most critical issues for Clinton to address. Both Clinton and her newly appointed running mate Tim Kaine are deeply aware of human rights abuses in Honduras and we are calling on them to support the bill put forward by Rep. Hank Johnson. As a woman of color involved in international movements for environmental and human rights, I don’t want to see any more lives taken simply for defending their land and communities,” said Helena Wong of the World March of Women.

Tanzania intimidates Maasai landgrab protesters

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Tanzania intimidates Maasai landgrab protesters

Intimidation of land rights defenders in Tanzania must stop, says international human rights organisation Forest Peoples Programme

Maasai men. Photo credit: bbc.co.uk
Maasai men. Photo credit: bbc.co.uk

Since 12 July, 18 Maasai elected officials, teachers, activists and community members who have been defending their lands from large-scale foreign safari companies have been arrested in Ngorongoro district, northern Tanzania. The Tanzanian government alleges that they pose a threat to national security. Another 52 names are allegedly contained on the list held by police for future arrest.

Many of those arrested are reportedly held for more than 10 days without charge, and with no access to legal representation or medical assistance. Four individuals suffered beatings while in custody, it was gathered. A lawyer who attended the police station to defend those arrested was also himself arrested, although later released. Those remaining in custody were charged and released on bail overnight after a national media campaign, and a demonstration by lawyers who boycotted all court activities. A number of individuals targeted for arrest remain in hiding. There are indications that police are still continuing to pursue arrests.

Those arrested have been supporting Maasai land rights in the Ngorongoro district in opposition to government plans to give their lands to large tourism and game-hunting companies. In March 2013, the government declared its intention to grant 1,500 square kilometres from the Maasai’s 4,000 square kilometres’ territory in the Ngorongoro district to Ortello Business Corporation, a United Arab Emirates (UAE) luxury game-hunting company, and Thomson Safari, an American safari company. Around 30,000 indigenous Maasai pastoralists will either be displaced from or lose access to their lands, if the government continues with its plan to sell Maasaian cestral land for tourism.

The government of Tanzania is alleging that the arrested Maasai land defenders have jeopardised national security when they have opposed large-scale threats to their lands, livelihoods and cultures.

Among the people arrested was Maasai representative Samwel Nangiria, who has previously publicly condemned actions to evict Maasai peoples from their lands. In 2009, more than 200 homes were burned and 3,000 Masaai made homeless, and in February 2014, another 100 homes were burned, essentially evicting a further 2,000-3,000 Maasai.

President of Tanzania, Jakaya Kikwete, stated on Twitter in November 2014 that that “there has never been, nor will there ever be any plan by the Government of Tanzania to evict the Maasai people from their ancestral land.” However, recent events seem to indicate that government discussions with companies for use of Maasai lands have continued since that date.

Anouska Perram, a human rights lawyer at Forest Peoples Programme, said: “It is clear that illegal tactics – including prolonged detention with charge, physical violence and refusing access to legal and medical support – are being used to intimidate the Maasai opposing government plans for their lands. Many of the people whose lands could be affected have also been warned to stay silent on the issue. It has not escaped our notice that these events have occurred at a time when discussions are occurring about the sale of land to the Ortello Business Corporation.”

Forest Peoples Programme (FPP), in a statement, called for the immediate halt of arrests, the cessation of all intimidation tactics against Maasai and their supporters, and for all charges to be dropped against those Maasai already arrested (and now released on bail).

Those arrested were listed by the FFP to include:

  • Clinton Kairungi – Teacher at Ololosokwan secondary school
  • SupukDaniel – Teacher at Olemaoi secondary school
  • SamwelNangiria – Director of Ngorongoro NGO Network
  • Joshua Makko – Chairman of Mondorus village
  • Mathew Olietman – Former MP of Ngorongoro district
  • Parkios – Chairman of Soisambu village
  • John Toroge – Traditional leader of Soisambu
  • Shilinde – Lawyer from Legal and Human Rights Centre (who went to the police station to represent the arrested)
  • Lilian – Wife of detainee Samwel Nangiria
  • Yanick Ndoinyo – Elected Councillor for Ololosokwan Village
  • Hon. Ndima (Tina) Timan – Elected Special Seat Councillor for Chadema

Another eight community members are said to have also been arrested.

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