The Foundation for Partnership Initiatives in the Niger Delta (PIND) has inaugurated a State Multi-Stakeholders Platform (MSP) in Rivers State to ensure the effective implementation of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).

The initiative aims to foster collaboration and coordination among key stakeholders, including communities, Host Community Development Trusts (HCDTs), NGOs, governments, and oil and gas companies.

Recall that the PIA, enacted in 2021, has brought about new opportunities for community development and revenue allocation in the Niger Delta region.

However, its implementation has faced challenges, including limited grassroots awareness and weak governance structures.

To address these issues, PIND, in collaboration with the Ford Foundation, launched the Bridges Project, which focuses on bridging the power and knowledge gap between communities and settlers in HCDTs.

According to Dr. Rachael Misan Rupee, Consultant of the Bridges Project, the MSP’s primary objective is to ensure that community stakeholders maximise the benefits of the PIA in their respective communities.

To achieve this, she said the platform will focus on facilitating collaboration among stakeholders, ensuring the successful operationalisation of HCDTs, and providing guidance to community structures in executing required processes.

The MSP comprises 20 carefully selected experts and stakeholders representing communities, settlers, civil society organisations, and government agencies, adding that the platform will meet regularly, with the scheduling of meetings determined after the first meeting.

Key roles include a Lead/Chairperson, Vice-chairperson, and Secretary, who will be elected or appointed.

She said, “The MSP is part of the Bridges Project, which has held eight sessions at the national level over the past two years. The project involves five focal states, including Rivers, Delta, Bayelsa, Ondo, and Akwa Ibom.”

Rupee emphasised that the Rivers State MSP will provide a platform for stakeholders to discuss and interact on issues concerning the PIA and HCDT implementation.

“The platform will enable us to harvest issues and solutions around the implementation of HCDTs vis-à-vis the PIA at the state level,” she said.

She further stated that the MSP will also facilitate advocacy on issues requiring policy or regulatory changes, saying:

“If there are issues that require advocacy, we will take them to the National Assembly House Committee on Host Communities or the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission,” Rupee explained.

Speaking shortly after the inauguration, the state Chairman of the MSP, Professor Lysias Gibert, said the platform aims to resolve issues concerning Host Community Development Trusts in Rivers State, ensuring peaceful resolution of conflicts between settlers and HCDTs.

He explained that the MSP is established to facilitate the effective implementation of the PIA, particularly in utilising the three per cent operating expenditure (opex) for the development of Rivers State oil-producing communities.

According to Gibert, the platform’s focus will be on maximising the benefits of the PIA for the state’s oil-producing communities.

“We are all believing that this multi-stakeholder platform will use it synergistically to bring about lots of resolution of issues concerning host community development trust here in Rivers State,” Gibert said.

He emphasised that the platform will be for the peaceful resolution of conflicts, minimising areas of conflict between settlers and HCDTs.