The Niger Dela Conflict With Specific Reference To The Ijaw And The Ogoni

The Federal Republic of Nigeria is located in the western part of Africa and covers a region of about 924,000 sq km with a population of more than 110 million people. The country is a home to the Ibo, Yoruba, and the Fulani/Hausa people, who form the majority. The minorities include the Ijaw, Ogoni, Efik, Kalabari, Ibibio, Ikwere, and others. The state mainly thrives on a rich oil wealth in the volatile Niger Delta, which accounts for about 65% of the GDP (US$ 93.275 billion). This mineral wealth is the main catalyst for conflicts that have torn the nation along religious, tribal, and political lines. Among the affected groups are the Ijaw and the Ogoni, who continue to lag behind in economic development despite the fact that they inhabit the Niger Delta. This group is a victim of multinationals whose goal is to annex this rich resource at the expense of the people’s health, social-cultural and economic wellbeing (Isumonah, 1998).
According to Ebeh (2000), the Ogoni inhabit the eastern fringes of the Niger Delta; their territory covers about 404 square miles with an estimated population of more than 500,000 people for a population density of about 490 persons per square kilometer. The Ijaw people are dispersed among the states of Rivers, Edo, Bayelsa, Akwa, Delta, and Ibom. They live along the eastern shores of Nigerian Coast and number about 14 million. The Ijaw speak four distinct languages. They depend on the mangrove for firewood. Their sources of seafood include mussels, oysters and crabs, mud skippers, and clams. They are a hardworking, skilled farmers and fishermen. The Ogoni people have six political kingdoms with a strong clan system dating back to 500 BC; each member belongs to a specific clan. The Ijaws believe that they came from their ancestors Tobu Otu and Kumoni-oru and can trace their history back to the Beni Kingdom (Ekperi).
Because of the spiritual attachments of the indigenous group to natural resources, mining of oil in the Western...