Financial institutions must take greater responsibility for the environmental and human rights consequences of businesses they finance, civil society groups have said, as communities in Nigeria’s Niger Delta continue to bear the impact of extractive activities.
The call was made in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, during a three-day capacity-building workshop on responsible finance, organised by the Fair Finance Nigeria Coalition.
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The FFNG Coalition comprises BudgIT Foundation, Oxfam, Connected Development, Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), Policy Alert and Support and Training Entrepreneurship Programme.
CISLAC serves as the secretariat of the project.
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The workshop, held from 26 to 28 August, brought together civil society organisations, community-based organisations, and media professionals to examine how financial decisions can affect environmental protection, human rights and sustainable livelihoods.
The Accountable Governance Programme Manager at Oxfam Nigeria, Henry Ushie, said finance should not be viewed as neutral, as financial institutions’ lending and investment decisions determine which businesses and activities receive financial support.
Mr Ushie said the Fair Finance Nigeria initiative was established to examine the environmental and social implications of financial institutions’ policies and investments. He said the initiative had examined issues including climate change, biodiversity, corruption, human rights, gender equality, labour rights, taxation, transparency, and accountability.
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According to him, the exercise exposed areas where financial institutions in Nigeria needed to improve, particularly in ensuring that their financing decisions do not contribute to activities that harm communities and the environment.
“Finance is not neutral,” Mr Ushie said.
“Some of us even have shares in the banks and all of that. And so we wanted to check the impacts of banks as it relates to our environment, as it relates to the kind of investments and facilities that they have as banks.”
Who finances environmental damage?
Mr Ushie said the responsibility for environmental protection should not rest solely on companies carrying out extractive activities.
He argued that financial institutions that provide capital for such activities must also examine the environmental and social consequences of their financing.
He called on the Central Bank of Nigeria to strengthen regulations governing sustainable finance and called on the National Assembly to exercise stronger oversight over financial institutions and their regulators.
“Banks should first of all have a policy on ground, and then carry through in the implementation of those policies,” he said.
He also advocated greater participation of affected communities in implementing banks’ sustainability policies. “Inclusion is really important to us,” Mr Ushie said.
“And that’s why we are having this workshop with community members for them to understand why we are doing this, how they are involved, how they are impacted.”
Niger Delta communities impacted
A member of the Coalition, Harry Udoh, said the initiative was designed to amplify the voices of communities affected by extractive activities.
He said communities often bear the environmental and livelihood costs of activities financed by financial institutions, despite having little influence over the decisions that enable such projects.
Mr Udoh cited findings from a survey in Ibeno and Eastern Obolo, Akwa Ibom State, where he said oil-related activities had affected farmlands and fishing, which are major sources of livelihood for residents.
“The enablers are the banks, where they get the funding to do so,” he said.
He said the responsibility should extend beyond banks to all financiers supporting activities with environmental and social consequences.
Mr Udoh said the training was aimed at equipping communities, civil society groups and journalists with the tools to question financing decisions and demand accountability from financial institutions and regulators.
Breaking bureaucratic barriers
Mr Ushie said affected communities and advocates should not be discouraged when financial institutions direct complaints from local branches to their headquarters.
He described such procedures as bureaucratic bottlenecks that could delay or frustrate legitimate advocacy.
He advised advocates to pursue complaints through several channels simultaneously, including writing to headquarters, using official email addresses, engaging local branches and deploying social media.
He said sustained local engagement, backed by public-interest communication, could increase pressure on financial institutions to address community concerns.
Journalists seek deeper engagement
Participants at the workshop called for sustained collaboration between the Coalition and journalists to improve reporting on the connections among finance, environmental degradation, and community rights.
A PREMIUM TIMES reporter, Ekemini Simon, said the training had opened a new area of reporting for participants.
He requested access to relevant research and data generated through the initiative to support further reporting.
Mr Simon also asked the Coalition to organise dedicated capacity-building programmes for journalists on responsible finance.
Idongesit Ashameri of the Daily Independent newspaper described the workshop as distinct from conventional training programmes for its practical approach.
She said the simulations and role-playing exercises enabled participants to understand how to apply the knowledge gained to real-life advocacy.
Ms Ashameri urged the organisers to maintain contact with participants and provide a platform for continued exchange of ideas and technical support.
Caroline Gordian of the Clement Isong Foundation said the initiative aligned with campaigns by the Akwa Ibom Extractive Justice Alliance against environmental pollution.
She said the group recently protested in Eket and submitted a petition to the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission over environmental concerns.
Ms Gordian said the alliance would continue to pursue its campaign against pollution and use the responsible finance initiative to strengthen efforts to hold financiers and polluters accountable.
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