PPDF Dialogue Mkpat Enin Stakeholders on How Communities Can Benefit from HCDT

Imo Etim

Peace Point Development Foundation in collaboration with Global Greengrants Fund and Oilwatch Africa has held a one-day dialogue with stakeholders of oil and gas communities of Mkpat Enin in Akwa Ibom State on how oil communities can benefit from the Host Communities Development Trust provided for in the Petroleum Industry Act, PIA, 2021.

The dialogue which was held last week in Ikot Obio Ndoho Community of Mkpat Enin trained community leaders on their role and how best to engage the oil and gas companies for the communities to stand on a better pedestal thus benefit from the Trust.

Mkpat Enin local government area is the host community to Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited and Sterling Global.

Peace Point Development Foundation’s Coordinator, Umo Isua-ikoh noted the dialogue was to Inform and clarify the roles and expectations of community stakeholders in setting up the governance organs of the HCDTs such as the Boards of Trustees, Management Committee and Advisory Committee, the source of funding of the trust, the role of the regulator when infractions are noticed and the overall implementation of the PIA.

In his presentation, the Resource Person, an Investigative Journalist and Resource Governance Expert, Ekemini Simon who led the participants through the various sections of the PIA that explains the HCDT noted that all in the communities have a role to play by participating in the need assessment which will be used for the formulation of a five year Community Development Plan (CDA).

Simon who said that section 240 (2) of the PIA mandates an oil and gas company to make an annual contribution to the Host Community Development Trust Fund of an amount equal to three per cent of the company’s actual annual operating expenditure of the preceding financial year, stressed that the community cannot fully know their due when they sit and wait for the companies to pay them whatever they want without investigating to find out what is the actual operating expenditure of the company.

Simon, who directed the communities to find out the annual operating expenses of the settlors at Corporate Affairs Commission and Federal Inland Revenue Service through the annual returns filed, also stressed the need for the communities to demand for the oil and gas companies to timely publish the annual returns on their website.

He pointed out that it was also the responsibility of the community to find out from some of the settlors and the regulator, Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission on why Section 236 of the PIA which provides for the Trust to be incorporated within 12 months from the effective date for existing mining lease is not adhered to.

The Resource Person also charged the community on the need to engage with the regulator for insight into the amount received so far from gas flaring fines fared in their domains and the specific environmental remediation projects embarked upon by NUPRC in line with Section 104 (4).

Community members in their respective reaction thanked PPDF over the dialogue noting that they have now been adequately equipped to better engage the oil companies and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission for the realization of their rights.