Resurgence of Armed Conflict in the Niger Delta Region and Nigeria's National Security
Authors:
OSAH Goodnews
Publication Type: Chapters in Books
Journal: Discourses On Peace And Conflict In Nigeria
ISSN Number:
0
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Abstract
For almost six decades now there has been a low-level war in the Niger Delta region. Militant bands have engaged the federal government of Nigeria and oil multinational companies operating in the region in an all-out fight to ground the oil sector which is the major source of Nigeria's foreign earning. The fight has been occasioned by struggle to control the resources derived from the region that is enormously blessed with crude oil reserves. The rise and fall of militant empires since the 1960s has been fueled by underdevelopment, abject poverty, and disregard for the environment; the ownership and control of resources, distributive injustice and the largesse from settlements from patrons. Conflict in the Niger Delta which is intimately ingrained in the history of the region has thrown up new interest years after. The notorious Slave Coast of West Africa beginning from the 16th century established an economy that setup the vested European interest against those of the indigenous communities in a clash over who controls the illicit trade from the hinterlands