Environmental Destruction and Poor Resource Governance are Provoking a Second Conflict in Nigeria ACM Interview with Udeme Akpan : Africa Wide - Informed Insights - Interviews with Experts

Nigeria has been battling Islamic militants in its north-east since 2009, yet the government now also faces the prospect of a second internal conflict - for very different reasons. The decision by President Muhammadu Buhari to shred agreements made with militant groups in the Niger Delta by his predecessor, has reignited long-standing grievances held by local communities, prompting pipeline sabotage and attacks on vital oil infrastructure, in protest. Udeme Akpan, a Nigeria-based IOA consultant and journalist and author with over 20 years of experience examining the dynamics of Nigeria's energy sector, says that environmental devastation in the Niger Delta is "real and forms the basis of the conflict". ACM spoke with Akpan about a range of issues affecting the security of Africa's largest economy.