Human securitising, sustainable peace and development in the Niger Delta of Nigeria

There is a huge body of literature on the crisis peacebuilding in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria and yet the region continues to be a topical area of concern not only to the Nigerian state; its peoples and government, but also to scholars and human development agencies globally. This is essentially because the pervasive crisis of underdevelopment which underlies various forms of social and armed conflict in the region remains unresolved. They are constantly assuming new dimensions and trajectories that perpetuate a frightening human security crisis (see UNDP Report, 2006; Sampson, 2008; Okeke-Uzodike and Isike, 2009), which calls for continuous global attention given that conflict can be exported (Ayoob, 1995). The most recent efforts at peace-building in the region by the Nigerian government; the Niger Delta amnesty programme, has also attracted attention as although it is still early days after only a year in place, it continues to raise fundamental questions of accountability, democracy and justice, all of which have been central to the Niger Delta question and for sustainable peace and development in the region.