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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 LAGOS 000061 
 
SIPDIS 
AMEMBASSY YAOUNDE PASS TO AMEMBASSY MALABO 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 2020/02/16 
TAGS: ECON PGOV KCOR SENV NI
SUBJECT: DEVELOPMENT DIFFICULTIES IN THE NIGER DELTA 
 
CLASSIFIED BY: Blair, Donna, CG, State, Lagos; REASON: 1.4(B), (D) 
 
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SUMMARY 
 
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¶1.  (C) The Niger Delta faces significant development challenges as 
illustrated by nine projects in Delta and Bayelsa States visited by 
PolOff January 20 and 21.  Difficult topography, ethnic rivalry, 
endemic corruption, under-development of human capacity, and a 
comprehensive lack of maintenance all undermine sustainability. 
END SUMMARY. 
 
 
 
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BUILDING ON SAND 
 
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¶2.  (SBU) The oil-rich Niger Delta is essentially a large mangrove 
swamp with sandy soil and high water levels.  Construction in this 
environment requires draining swamps and building solid 
foundations.  For example, Niger Delta Wetlands Centre Executive 
Director Dr. Miriam Isoun told PolOff January 20 that it took the 
NGO eight years using its limited resources to drain off the land 
for their headquarters in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, and build up 
sufficient foundations for the construction of one to two-story 
buildings. 
 
 
 
¶3.  (U) Across the Delta, roads must be raised and require chains 
of bridges to traverse the network of rivers and good surface 
drainage to cope with tropical deluges.  These requirements greatly 
increase the costs of construction and the know-how needed for 
infrastructure projects. 
 
 
 
¶4.  (U) Wells must be deep because digging to the water-level only 
results in wells which offer brackish, polluted water.  PolOff was 
shown three wells in different communities that had been dug too 
shallowly and so represented a health hazard rather than a benefit 
to the communities.  According to Isoun, quality drinking water in 
the Niger Delta is generally not found at less than five hundred 
feet and a geological survey is required for each projected well 
site to determine the optimal depth for reaching potable water. 
 
 
 
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JEALOUSY IMPEDES DEVELOPMENT 
 
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¶5.  (SBU) The Niger Delta is inhabited by a patchwork of ethnic 
groups including Ijaws, Isekiri, Urhobo, Edo, Efik and Ibibio. 
These have a long history of fighting over resources and 
development plans for the Niger Delta must take into account the 
potential for ethnic jealousy and resulting violence.  The Delta 
State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC) in 
consequence has a commissioner from each of the main ethnic groups 
and, according to the Chairman Chief Okirika, DESOPADEC carefully 
balances the awarded contracts between the ethnic communities to 
ensure that each has a number of projects commensurate to the size 
of their populations.  Even so, a project in one community often 
 
LAGOS 00000061  002 OF 003 
 
 
ignites envy from other communities of the same ethnicity.  As a 
result, development projects cannot be undertaken on a purely 
cost-effective basis but must always take into consideration the 
potential for violence and vandalism. 
 
 
 
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WHERE DOES THE MONEY GO? 
 
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¶6.  (SBU) Most development contracts are still awarded in 
non-competitive and opaque processes that benefit contractors with 
close ties to the awarding authority.  This generally funnels money 
to local businesses, but the lack of transparency in contract 
management results in "leakages" which reduce the funds actually 
available for work.  Likewise, the opportunities for personal 
benefit often impact development decisions and planning.  Dr. Chris 
Ekiyor said that DESOPADEC endeavors to do real work in rural 
communities and respond to local requests.  Nevertheless, most of 
the projects benefit first and foremost the traditional ruler, the 
Local Government Area chairman, or other "big men."  Isoun claimed 
that solar-powered bore-holes are unpopular because the solar 
panels power underground pumps that produce water only.  This is 
because communities prefer generator-powered bore-holes where the 
electricity can be siphoned off to run TVs and other electric 
appliances in the near-by houses of the village elite. 
 
 
 
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UNDERDEVELOPED HUMAN RESOURCES HURT DEVELOPMENT 
 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
 
 
¶7.  (SBU) The inhabitants of the Niger Delta do not have universal 
access to education and the quality of schools and teachers is 
uneven.  PolOff visited four schools and noted that many school 
structures are dilapidated with leaking roofs, crumbling walls, 
insufficient desks and benches, no electricity, no window panes, 
and, often, no sanitary facilities.  PolOff visited a community 
that had applied for a grant to dig a 90-foot bore-hole powered by 
electricity to provide drinking water.  There has been no 
geological survey of the site and no indication that sweet, 
drinkable water will be found at 90 feet.  In all probability, this 
well will be a waste of money just like the last bore-hole 
completed in 2007 which was also too shallow at roughly 20 feet and 
produced contaminated water. 
 
 
 
¶8.  (SBU) Another consequence of the low quality of education is 
the low quality of contract work.  Local contractors are preferred 
in building, but the results are monuments to the inability of 
these firms to work to international standards.  PolOff noted, for 
example, that one brand new, not-yet-commissioned school structure 
had steps that were severely uneven because the contractor 
evidently did not know how to build (or did not see the need for) 
even steps; the steps represented a safety hazard to students. 
 
 
 
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SUSTAINABILITY 
 
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LAGOS 00000061  003 OF 003 
 
 
¶9.  (SBU) Even structures and facilities designed to be 
"low-maintenance" can rapidly become worthless if vandalized, 
neglected, or left unrepaired when minor damage occurs.  At a 
ceremony to mark the opening of a solar powered bore-hole in 
Kaiama, Bayelsa State, Isoun appealed to the traditional ruler to 
ensure that this very expensive, state-of-the-art equipment was 
properly respected and looked after.  Isoun claimed that the solar 
powered installation was very low-maintenance and that the 
photovoltaic cells could last over twenty years, the pumps could 
last 15 years and the tank could last even longer.  However, the 
pump would be overworked and would break down in a short period of 
time if minor problems with wiring, leakages, worn-out gaskets on 
the taps, etc. were not addressed immediately.  She also pointed 
out the limitations of the new borehole, appealing to the 
inhabitants through the traditional ruler to use the water as 
intended (for drinking), because the capacity of the tank was 
insufficient to serve all the needs of the community.  Over-use, 
she warned, could also lead to a breakdown.  The truth of her words 
was underlined by the over-grown and collapsing structure of 
earlier boreholes in the immediate vicinity. 
 
 
 
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COMMENT 
 
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¶10.  (C) The technological solutions to the Delta's problems are 
well-established and billions of dollars have been allocated to the 
development of the region since the discovery of oil in the Niger 
Delta.  Thus, neither technological nor financial restraints are to 
blame for the region's under-development. Instead, inadequate 
planning, inappropriate or the complete absence of design, and 
incompetent execution have littered the landscape with abandoned 
development projects that were either never delivered as intended 
or rapidly fell into disrepair and disuse.  Money has effectively 
been re-invested in the same projects - whether it is roads, 
bore-holes, or schools - over and over again.  One key to 
sustainable development is human capital development to: 1) ensure 
that investments are made in a transparent and accountable manner 
to contractors with proven competence; 2) improve the quality of 
craftsmanship of local contractors, and 3) educate communities on 
the fundamentals of maintenance and repair.  END COMMENT. 
 
 
 
¶11.  (U) ConGen Lagos coordinated this cable with Embassy Abuja. 
BLAIR