From Jefferson Ibiwale, Benin

The Edo State government has cautioned youths in the state to be civil in their demands for social amenities and employment from oil companies, stressing that it was the responsibility of the state and local governments.

Secretary to the Edo State Government, Julius Ihonvbere, who gave the caution on Thursday in Benin at a one-day stakeholders’ forum tagged “Effective Corporate Social Responsibility: A Tool for Sustainable Peace In Oil Producing Communities,” organised by the state Ministry of Solid Minerals, Oil and Gas, said that the forum was another milestone in the quest by the state government “to remind us of out duty to ourselves at all times.”.

Ihonvbere noted that the oil and gas sector has till date remained the main stay of the nation’s ‎economy and has contributed immensely to the development of the Nigerian state.

He said, however, that there was need to re-evaluate the contribution of the sector to the development of the oil producing communities and the country.

“Edo State government, in line with the provisions of the law setting up the Edo State Oil and Gas, Producing Area Development Commission, EDSOGPADEC, has been providing both capacity for human development and basic amenities (infrastructure) such as roads, water, electricity, schools, health centres, skills acquisition centres, markets, to mention but a few,”‎ Ihonvbere said.

The executive director/coordinator, Edo State Economic and Strategy Team, Joseph Eboigbe, who delivered the keynote address, said for corporate social responsibility to be effective, it must involve a collaborative effort between primary stakeholders, namely, government, communities and oil corporations.

“Engagement between stakeholders is very often strained and sometimes filled with conflict because all parties involved are not fully aware of each other’s priorities. For example, community members may not fully understand how to help oil and gas companies meet their corporate objectives,” he noted.

Eboigbe, therefore, urged that corporate social responsibility should begin with a new approach where all stakeholders come to agreement on the same basic principles of human and environmental rights.