It was a Monday morning, cloudy, and it seemed like rain was about to fall when SaharaReporters entered the Ayamasa community in Ekeremor Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, in the oil-rich Niger Delta, Nigeria.

Just at the bank of the river where our reporter had disembarked from the speedboat, community residents were seen arriving in the community, while some were exiting the village by boat.

At the riverbank, commercial motorcycles were parked, and their drivers waited for passengers. Children were seen enjoying the cloudy weather, playing football with their clothes off.

But beneath the apparent calm, Ayamasa, a small village in Ekeremor Local Government Area of Bayelsa State and a host community to the Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC), now taken over by Oando Plc in September 2024, is slowly suffocating under the weight of oil.

With every spill from the Tsuomo-Ogainbiri Gas Delivery Pipeline, the community sinks deeper into hunger, disease, and despair.

A community hosting a multinational company and benefiting from the established law of 3% shares for host communities would have access to basic amenities, including healthcare centres, potable drinking water, and clean air.

However, the opposite is true. Environmental pollution from oil spills has destroyed community farmlands, contaminated drinking water, and affected rivers where fishers catch fish.

Life of Horror in a Polluted Paradise

Residents of the community claimed that diarrhoea, scabies, amongst others, affect them every time there is an oil spill from the Tsuomo-Ogainbiri Gas Delivery Pipeline in the community. SaharaReporters also saw rashes on the skin of some residents.

The Chairman of the community,  Apeikumo Aleibiri, accused the Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC) of polluting the community through its constant gas leakage and oil spills.

He described the company’s activities as a significant contributor to climate change in the area, leading to more frequent and severe floods and excessive hot weather.

Neither NAOC nor Oando responded to our email for comment.

Aleibiri told SaharaReporters that despite his community’s contribution to the country's wealth through its oil and other natural resources, the community has continued to suffer, as it seems to have been sidelined.

He pointed out that for over six years, there has not been an electricity supply in Ayamasa community.

“Some areas of our water now have no fish in them because when the oil spills everywhere, fish cannot stay there again,” Aleibiri said.

“We don't have fish anymore. Apart from the big river, the swamp areas don't have fish anymore.”

He further noted that while oil spillage from the company’s pipeline spills over to the swamps and rivers, killing fish, the gas from the company station is blown by the breeze, which pollutes the atmosphere and also affects residents.

“The odour gives us diarrhoea and a particular sickness that causes itching on the body,” he said.

Some residents report that they often scratch their bodies due to air pollution.

“It is more or less like chicken pox. When it is serious, once you enter our community, you see everyone scratching their bodies,” Aleibiri said.

Asked about the primary cause of the oil spill, Aleibiri said, “Our people, the youths, vandalise it (pipeline) because they are making money from it. This gas they are vandalising brings sickness.”

“We suffered this sickness for over a year plus. Even till now, some people still have it in our community.

“The healing just started three months ago, which is from July [2024], but since they stopped the vandalisation of the pipelines, the odour has stopped coming to us or reduced, and the problem has subsided, but overall, we are still suffering a lot in our community.”

Checks on the records by the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) website showed that the latest spill in the community occurred on May 3, 2024, at the pipeline location, 6'' Tuomo-Ogbainbiri Gas Delivery Pipeline at Ayamasa gas line.

According to the NOSDRA report, the spill was caused by vandals who used a hacksaw to cut approximately 133mm of the gas delivery pipeline at the 5 to 7 o’clock position.

Further investigation by SaharaReporters revealed that between January 2015 and June 2025, NAOC had a total of 1,429 incidents, resulting in the spill of 18,339.20 barrels of crude oil in Bayelsa State.

Additionally, OANDO reported 25 incidents, resulting in the spill of 223.94 barrels of crude oil between 2024 and 2025, according to data from the Nigeria Oil Monitor incident report.

However, both NAOC and OANDO did not respond to our email seeking for comment.

Security, Silence, Government and Corporate Neglect

The Ayamasa community in Nigeria's Niger Delta is grappling with severe environmental degradation and neglect from both state and federal governments, according to community leaders. 

Former Vice Chairman Mr. Benjamin and current Chairman Aleibiri described a landscape ravaged by oil spills, leaving residents facing numerous challenges. 

The lack of basic amenities, such as healthcare, clean water, and electricity, is pervasive. 

"We don't have a good hospital, no doctor here," Aleibiri stated, highlighting the community's reliance on the distant Bomadi town general hospital for medical care.

The soil, contaminated by oil spills, renders agriculture unproductive, further exacerbating the community's hardships. 

Residents report that even their medications are becoming ineffective due to the pervasive pollution.

Their primary source of drinking water, the extension of the River Niger, is also contaminated, impacting the community's health and well-being.

Although the Nigerian government attempted to provide alternative water through pipe-borne systems, Aleibiri told SaharaReporters that most of the projects remain unfinished, while the only completed one has never functioned.

Hence, the community depends on the contaminated river and one functioning pipe-borne water provided by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).

The Climate and Agricultural  Toll

The economic consequences of environmental damage are devastating. 

"Our agricultural life is no more as it used to be because of the effects of the oil and gas stations," Aleibiri lamented, describing the widespread damage to crops and the resulting food insecurity. 

The lack of economic opportunities has also contributed to a rise in crime, with many young people turning to oil pipeline vandalism and highway robbery out of desperation.

Despite the community's status as a host community to oil and gas operations, the benefits are minimal. 

While a government-contracted security outfit, TANTITA, has provided some employment, the number of Ayamasa residents employed is far below the expected quota for a host community, according to local sources.

Similarly, a small number of "sit-at-home" slots for elderly individuals are provided by the oil company, but these are insufficient to address the widespread poverty and lack of support. 

The community members also allege that the oil companies are failing to uphold their obligations under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), diverting funds intended for the community towards pipeline repairs. 

"They (oil company) said they use it to repair the pipelines. So after the repairs, nothing is given to us as a host community," Aleibiri said.

The impact of the oil spill extends beyond economic hardship, drastically altering the climate and weather patterns.

"We don't know the difference between dry and rainy seasons anymore," he noted, describing unpredictable rainfall and persistent flooding that damage crops and further destabilise the community's food supply. 

The lack of clean-up efforts, coupled with the persistent flooding, further compounds the already dire situation, leaving residents struggling to survive amidst widespread poverty, environmental damage, and governmental neglect. 

Despite the presence of prominent community members in government, the Ayamasa community continues to be overlooked, highlighting a systemic failure to address the needs of this marginalised community.

When asked if Oando had carried out any community development projects since taking over from Agip in September 2024, Aleibiri replied that no projects had been undertaken.

He said, “They only invited us to a meeting. Even the Christmas gifts, they (Oando) gave us nothing. Agip used to give us a cow, bags of rice, groundnut oil, and other things.”

He said that during a meeting with Oando in October 2024, the company merely introduced itself to the community and asked them to itemise their needs and concerns.

“We told them about the problems in our area. We discussed many things at that meeting, and afterwards, they said they would call us back, but they haven't called us again.”

Regarding the effects of oil spills and gas flaring on his farming, he said, “This has terribly affected my farmland.

“All my plantains died after the oil spilt, flowed through the water, and touched them.

“When the oil spilt during the dry season, all my cassava died because my entire cassava farm was affected. My wife's cassava farm across the house was also completely destroyed.”

Aleibiri said he doesn’t know the exact amount the oil company should pay the community as the 3% Operating Expenditure (OPEX) to a host community, as stipulated in Section 257(2) of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021.

However, he reiterated that while Agip operated the pipeline, the company paid the community N37 million over 2-4 years, claiming it used the remaining funds to repair vandalised pipelines and conduct cleanup exercises.

Asked who or where the N37 million was paid to and its purpose, Aleibiri said, “The money was paid under an agreement.

“Community members were appointed to the Cluster Board, who signed the agreement with the oil company. The money was paid into the Cluster Board's bank account.

“The Cluster Board was supposed to use the money for the community, but they haven't done anything.

“We are not receiving the money anymore, and we haven't seen the funds the company paid.

“Last year, they (Cluster Board) said they wanted to do something for us, but nothing happened. Nothing has been done to this day.”

A female farmer and community resident, Mrs. Gloria Apeikumo, who also spoke about the damage caused by oil spills and gas flaring in the community, lamented that all her farms and fish ponds have been destroyed.

Speaking in Pidgin English, Gloria told SaharaReporters, “This oil spill has caused severe hunger for my family. We're hungry because we have nothing to eat.

“All my fish died. All my cassava plants rotted due to this pipeline oil spill. I'm suffering because of this oil spill. Everyone in my house is suffering.

“I had at least 10 cassava farms, but the oil spill destroyed all. Without cassava, we have no food. As for my fish ponds, I'm at a loss for words.

“I have no fish left to eat because the oil flowed into the ponds and killed all the fish. Some were washed into the rivers, which are also contaminated.”

She continued, “I had over 20 fish in my ponds, but only two fingerlings remain after the oil killed some, and the water washed others into the rivers.

“I'm deeply in debt. I don't even have garri to feed my children. I buy on credit, and since I no longer have an income, I owe a significant amount of debt.

“Like almost everyone here, I buy food on credit. If the sellers refused credit, my children and I would be dead.

“I need help. I need money to open a shop since the oil spill prevents me from farming and fishing. The government and oil companies should help me. We all need help.”

Attempts to obtain copies of the letters that the community said they sent to the government authorities and oil companies were unsuccessful.

While the new Community Development Chairman, Mr. Jonah Ekokeme, confirmed having copies of the letters, he was unable to release them despite repeated requests from our reporter.

Struggles of Delta Community Residents

Like the Ayamasa Community in Bayelsa State, a visit to Emu Obedeti Community in Ndokwa West Local Government Area of Delta State was another record of lamentation over the destruction of farmlands, acute hunger, and diseases caused by oil spills and the activities of oil companies in the area.

Emu Obedeti is a neighbouring community to the Emu Ebendo community, which hosts the 12" MWOG/UPIL Pipeline Facility being operated by Midwestern Oil & Gas Corporation.

The pipeline facility runs through the Emu Obedeti community, making it a co-host and benefiting community.

Emu Obedeti is also a host community to an oil well being operated by Energia Limited, an oil company, which the community members said is also operating 12" MWOG/UPIL Pipeline Facility alongside Midwestern Oil & Gas Corporation and Pillar Oil Limited.

Data from the oil monitor website shows an incident of oil spill in Emu Ebendo on June 23, 2024, following the illegal attachment of a 2" Ball Valve with Galvanised pipe extension mounted at a 12 o' clock position on 12" MWOG/UPIL Pipeline Facility.

Between July 2016 and October 2024, data from the oil monitor website shows that MWOG had 49 incidents, spilling a total of 335.91 barrels of crude oil in Delta State.

When contacted in a letter jointly written by The Colonist Report Africa and SaharaReporters, Midwestern Oil and Gas (MWOG) said that the 12-inch crude oil pipeline is operated and managed solely by Umugini Pipeline Infrastructure Limited (UPIL). 

“UPIL holds complete operational responsibility, encompassing maintenance and community relations. Therefore, Midwestern cannot directly address concerns about oil spill data, pipeline incidents, or project implementation,” the company said. 

For transparency, MWOG referred our inquiry to UPIL.  Midwestern affirmed its commitment to responsible upstream oil and gas operations, accountability, environmental stewardship, and stakeholder engagement.

Based on the NOSDRA’s report, SaharaReporters visited the Emu Ebendo community for on-the-spot assessment and verification of the incident and its impact on the community and its environs.

However, the Emu Ebendo Community Development Council Chairman, Sunday Enuzo, denied the incident.

Enuzo told SaharaReporter, “There has never been any case of oil spill in this community before or since I became the CDC Chairman about a year ago now.”

When he was confronted with the NOSDRA’s report, Enuzo said, “I am the chairman of the Emu Ebendo community, and I don’t know how they got this report but I am telling you that there was never an incident of oil spill.

“And I can tell you that if there is any case of oil spill here, I know the appropriate place to go and what to do.

“I know the right authorities to go to and get them to do the right thing. I can categorically tell you that there has never been a case of oil spill in the Emu Ebendo community.”

Meanwhile, as Enuzo prevented SaharaReporters from moving around the community to speak with other residents and visit the exact oil spill site, a resident of Emu Obedeti who simply identified himself as Mr. Gilbert told our reporter that he personally witnessed the June 23, 2024, oil spill in the Emu Ebendo community.

“The CDC Chairman is lying”, Gilbert said. I know the day that the spill happened. That day, I was going to Emu Ebendo, and I saw a tanker parked along the road where the pipeline was broken, and they were pumping the oil into the tanker.

“There were many soldiers there protecting them, and I wanted to stop, but when I saw the soldiers, I had to quickly drive off because if I had stopped, they would have forced me to stay there until they finished.

“What they do is that if you see them when they are vandalising the pipeline and moving the crude oil, they will force you to stay with them until they are finished, but they would give some money like N30,000, N50,000, N60,000 or more, depending on the kind of people involved.

Gilbert alleged that, “Most of the time, before they break the pipeline and move oil, they must have made an arrangement with top community leaders and security agents in the community, and sometimes, like the Emu Ebendo case, they can go with soldiers.”

In Emu Obedeti, the immediate neighbouring community to Emu Ebendo, the Secretary of the Community Development Council, Mr. Rudolf Idu, told SaharaReporters that there was no oil spill in Emu Obedeti in 2024, but there was one case of oil spill in November 2023.

“Well, there was no oil spill in Emu Obedeti this year. The one we encountered happened last year during the rainy season, then after that time, around November, the oil companies came for the clean up,” Idu said.

He told SaharaReporters that the Emu Ebendo pipeline facilities run through Emu Obedeti to Arahde and Ilu communities.

On what the oil companies and the state and the federal government have done and are doing for them as an oil producing community, especially as a community that has been affected by oil spill, Idu said the companies have things they do for the community annually, but for the government, “There is nothing coming in.”

He added, “We are not getting anything from the government in respect of oil, nothing is coming in.”

But for the companies, he said, “Like annually, there are projects they do for each community.

“They liaise with our leaders based on the projects we want from the companies each year.

“What we get from the companies depends on the land space covered by the pipeline, which is the money we get from them.

“Our own percentage is different from other communities covered by the pipeline.

“Like this year, they just did something, our town hall, two days ago, the contractor just resumed work.

“We requested Luvas windows for the town hall, and the company has responded already by mobilising the contractor in charge of the project.

“Like the issue of blackout, what we are getting from the company (referring to Midwestern Oil & Gas Corporation) won't be enough to fix and restore electricity in the community.

“The company so far is only concentrating on the town hall project. What they were able to do this year was to fix the windows, but still couldn't complete it.

“We still have about four to five windows unfixed based on the allocation that was coming in.”

Meanwhile, two members of the Emu Obedeti Community Development Council, Mr. Nelson Obuwe and Gilbert, told SaharaReporters that no compensation had been paid to affected farmers — including themselves — despite the widespread damage caused by the November 2023 oil spill.

Obuwe and Gilbert, who took SaharaReporters to the oil spill site, confirmed that there was a clean-up carried out by the oil companies, but noted that only members of the community who were engaged in the clean-up work were paid for the work they did.

They claimed, “The oil pipelines are owned by different companies, but they are all operating under the canopy of one particular company which is Energia Limited. A claim that Sahara Reporters couldn’t verify immediately.

“We have the Midwestern oil pipeline, Energia oil pipeline & Piller oil pipeline.

“The clean up was done to the affected areas, and no compensation was paid to the community, nor anyone who owns land in the affected oil spillage areas.

“They only employed a few persons during the clean-up and claim they have compensated the community.

“Those people only worked for their money for the engagement they got during the clean-up activities by the company.

“The farmlands are totally degraded, and the effects of the crude oil chemicals are still very much on the land from the physical appearance.

“We don't know how long it will take for it to be useful again for farming activities, even the fish ponds that were within the environment are no longer in existence.

“Fishes can't survive in the affected areas again as a result of the oil spillage on the farmlands.”

In response to our request, UPIL said in a letter forwarded through MWOG that 99% of oil spills were attributed to sabotage. 

The company also stated that it has provided community support through initiatives such as school construction and scholarships.

Idu, Obuwe and Gilbert lamented, “Up till now, we are not benefiting anything from the Energia oil company as an impacted community.

“We have written to them several times, but till now they have refused to recognise us as an impacted community.

“They keep deceiving us with the claim of the oil well in our community that they are coming to start working on the oil well and we will be treated as a host community, and that we should forget about being treated as an impacted community.

“They just abandoned this oil well for no reason, and every benefit that is supposed to come to us as a host community or impactful community is not coming to us.

“Even the company does not employ anybody from Emu Obedeti.”

Corroborating Obuwe and Gilbert’s claims, Idu said, “Another challenge the community is facing is that we have an oil well that was being allocated to Energia Limited, which is called Obedeti 1.”

He added, “The oil well is found inside our farmland, and it is accessible. The oil well has not been functioning since it was discovered and developed in the 1970s.

“Although the Nigerian government attempted to provide alternative water through pipe-borne systems, Aleibiri told SaharaReporters that most of the projects remain unfinished, while the only completed one has never functioned.

“I don't actually know their office, but they came and liaised with the community and visited the oil well to know the condition of the oil well.”

He lamented that the second part of the Oil Well in Emu Ebendo called Obedeti 2, “is even where we are having problems because if you check their operational sites, it was directed to our community.”

According to him, “It is not up to two kilometres from here, but they don't treat us as if we have anything to do with them.

“Even at night, you will see the high impact of atmospheric pressure of lightning surfacing our environment.

“During the rainy season, when they want to do their waste flushing, most of the waste from the company flows into the flood, which flows into our river, killing aquatic life, including fish in our local ponds.

“Excessive heat from the company site has disrupted normal nighttime life; the darkness associated with night no longer exists. Children born since the company's flaring began cannot describe what night looks like,” Idu said.

Following the 2024 oil spill, residents experienced harmful smells and scabies before the oil companies cleaned up the spill.  The community faces issues stemming from Midwestern oil and gas pipelines and the Energia Limited site, primarily impacting their natural fish ponds.

According to the community sources, Energia Limited claims to be operating the Obedeti 1 Oil Well and working to improve the community's situation, but this is not the case. The Obedeti 1 Oil Well, located within the community, is not operational, and the company is accused of misleading the federal government.

The  Obedeti 2 oil well, however, is operational and located approximately 2 kilometres away in the Emu Ebendo community. The activities of Energia Limited at the Emu Ebendo Oil Well have severely depleted fish stocks in the rivers. “The community receives no benefits from the company and is not treated as a host community,” say community residents.

SaharaReporters was unable to get comments from Energia Limited as the company also operates in a joint venture with Oando, and did not respond to our email jointly written with The Colonist Report Africa for comment.

Human/Environmental Rights Activist In Rage

Speaking with our reporter, Alagoa Morris, Deputy Executive Director of the Environmental Defenders Network (ERA), expressed serious concerns over the conduct of International Oil Companies (IOCs) operating in Nigeria, especially regarding their environmental practices and legal obligations.

He criticised the common practice of not purchasing land for their onshore facilities, instead opting to pay royalties to landowners on an intermittent basis.

“The IOCs didn’t buy the lands where they put their facilities onshore,” he said, adding that royalties are often paid every three or four years, with little transparency or consistency.

Morris highlighted the negligence of companies like Shell and Agip in consulting with landowners during the divestment of assets.

He said communities are often left uninformed about new operators, their responsibilities, or the environmental conditions of the land and infrastructure.

“We want to know the state of the environment. As you are divesting, what is the state of the environment?” he asked, stressing the importance of environmental audits.

Recalling past disasters such as the 2011 Bonga spill and the 2012 Chevron gas explosion, Morris noted, “Shell did not pay one penny to victims,” emphasising the long-term damage to fisherfolk and local ecosystems.

He further stated that in 2013, an Agip facility spill was similarly mishandled, with crude oil being sunk using chemicals rather than being properly cleaned up.

He mentioned that communities like Ikarama in Bayelsa State continue to suffer.

Despite cleanup claims, crude oil continues to seep from the ground.

“In the Ikarama community, young and old people are coming down with cancer,” Morris said, urging proper remediation and compensation.

He also drew attention to the neglected Oloibiri oilfield, the site of Nigeria’s first commercial oil discovery in 1956.

Despite Shell removing some equipment, he said no formal decommissioning occurred, leaving residents vulnerable to environmental risks.

Morris condemned regulatory bodies such as NOSDRA and the environment ministries, accusing them of regulatory capture.

“The oil companies will have to provide vehicles, boats, and helicopters, and even sometimes provide accommodation,” he explained, arguing this undermines independence and effective enforcement.

He described regulators as “occult people” for their failure to intervene in major spills.

In response to these issues, Morris said peaceful protests were held in Port Harcourt and Yenagoa to demand accountability.

“We are agitated,” he said, calling for environmental audits, cleanups, and compensation before further divestments occur.

He also urged the extension of the Ogoniland cleanup to other polluted areas, especially Bayelsa State.

Highlighting broader impacts, Morris noted, “The lake condemned, swamp condemned,” describing how oil spills destroy ecosystems, livelihoods, and health.

“Even in the Mangrove forest, sometimes all the mangrove wouldl die as a result of the toxic nature of crude oil.”

He linked this destruction to declining life expectancy, rare diseases, and cancer.

“We are about 10% different when you talk about life expectancy,” he added.

Morris decried oil theft, especially at export terminals.

“The stealing at the export terminal is like using a drum to steal it,” he quoted a naval officer, pointing to widespread complicity among oil firms, security forces, and regulators.

He urged reform and accountability, “They should do soul-searching and ensure that the bad eggs within them are sacked.”

Oil-Rich, Dirt-Poor

From Ayamasa to Emu Obedeti, the story is the same: oil companies are extracting billions of Naira while the host communities are left in environmental ruins. Farmlands poisoned. Water undrinkable. Youths are criminalised. Lives destroyed.

Both communities echo the same plea: “We need help.”

There has been no proper cleanup. No fair compensation. No sustainable development.

The oil beneath their feet, instead of bringing prosperity, has become a curse — one that stains the earth, silences voices, and sacrifices futures.

This investigation was funded by the HEDA Resource Centre. The organisation has also published the report alongside other findings.