ABSTRACT
Development interventions are aimed at promoting positive change, but they can
equally have negative impact, especially in conflict-prone contexts. Whereas existing
studies on Odi and the Niger Delta at large mainly focused on the history, environment, culture, conflict and security situations, the peace and conflict impact of Nigerian government‘s socio-economic interventions in the area have not been fully explored. This study, therefore, assessed the Niger Delta Development Commission‘s
(NDDC) interventions, to determine their relationship with the Commission‘s mandate, strategies, and community needs; their interactions with the community; and
their impact on the dynamics of peace and conflict in Odi, a community that has attracted many interventions after the 1999 massacre.
The study adopted the grounded theory and case study research designs. Primary and
secondary data were collected through key informant and in-depth interviews, official
documents and non-participant observation. Fifty-four key informant interviews were
conducted with seven members of the Traditional Ruling Council and the Community
Development Committee, six religious leaders, five women leaders, five Youth Council executives, 24 project beneficiaries, 12 NDDC staff, and five NDDC consultants.
Forty-seven in-depth interviews were also held with six school teachers, ten politicians, and two law enforcement agents in Odi, five international/non-governmental
organisations staff, six activists, and eight academics and professionals. The Niger
Delta Regional Development Master Plan, the NDDC Act, and website contents were
consulted. Non-participant observations were carried out at NDDC project sites in
Odi. The data gathered were content analysed.
The NDDC integrated development strategy correlated with NDDC‘s mandate and
people‘s needs. However, the Commission, in implementing its interventions, contravened some of its articulated guiding principles and policies like promoting good governance, transparency, participatory decision-making, and impact assessment. Also,
inadequate community consultation caused dissonance in NDDC‘s and community‘s
prioritisation of needs. Moreover, due to inadequate consideration for peace and conflict sensitivity, the interventions produced series of positive and negative impact on
peace and conflict dynamics in Odi. Construction of roads and educational facilities,
rural electrification and training in modern agricultural practices impacted positively
on the structural causes of conflict. They brought federal government‘s presence to
Odi; provided income for male youths employed as labourers and for construction materials‘ suppliers as well as capacity building in modern agricultural practices. However, the community perceived the NDDC interventions as resources and competed for
in a socio-political environment characterised by pervasive corruption and bad governance. This provided sufficient conditions for spirals of negative consequences that
ultimately reduced the overall effectiveness of the interventions. The negative impact
included entrenching corruption in intervention cycle, power disequilibrium between
NDDC and Odi community, oppression and division, and gender inequality, communal conflicts, and apathy.
The Niger Delta Development Commission‘s interventions, intended for positive
change, also had many negative consequences in Odi because the Commission failed
to mainstream peace and conflict sensitivity in the interventions. The NDDC should
therefore adhere strictly to its guiding principles and policies as well as international best practices in intervention programming in order to maximise the positive and
minimise the negative impacts of its interventions.
AKINYOADE, A (2021). PEACE AND CONFLICT IMPACT ASSESSMENT OF THE NIGER DELTA DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION’S INTERVENTIONS IN ODI, BAYELSA STATE, NIGERIA. Afribary. Retrieved from https://afribary.com/works/peace-and-conflict-impact-assessment-of-the-niger-delta-development-commission-s-interventions-in-odi-bayelsa-state-nigeria
AKINYOADE, ADEMOLA "PEACE AND CONFLICT IMPACT ASSESSMENT OF THE NIGER DELTA DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION’S INTERVENTIONS IN ODI, BAYELSA STATE, NIGERIA" Afribary. Afribary, 25 Mar. 2021, https://afribary.com/works/peace-and-conflict-impact-assessment-of-the-niger-delta-development-commission-s-interventions-in-odi-bayelsa-state-nigeria. Accessed 15 Aug. 2022.
AKINYOADE, ADEMOLA . "PEACE AND CONFLICT IMPACT ASSESSMENT OF THE NIGER DELTA DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION’S INTERVENTIONS IN ODI, BAYELSA STATE, NIGERIA". Afribary, Afribary, 25 Mar. 2021. Web. 15 Aug. 2022. < https://afribary.com/works/peace-and-conflict-impact-assessment-of-the-niger-delta-development-commission-s-interventions-in-odi-bayelsa-state-nigeria >.
AKINYOADE, ADEMOLA . "PEACE AND CONFLICT IMPACT ASSESSMENT OF THE NIGER DELTA DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION’S INTERVENTIONS IN ODI, BAYELSA STATE, NIGERIA" Afribary (2021). Accessed August 15, 2022. https://afribary.com/works/peace-and-conflict-impact-assessment-of-the-niger-delta-development-commission-s-interventions-in-odi-bayelsa-state-nigeria