Corruption, greed and apathy have made Bayelsa one of the most polluted place on earth. Meet the people living here, desperate for change. Help us force those responsible to take action
Bayelsa is a small state located in the south of Nigeria, Africa’s largest oil producing country.
Bayelsa accounts for 40% of Nigeria’s oil wealth, and hosts the operations of the large multinational oil companies. Bayelsa is also the victim of oil spills every year and as a result, is suffering from the continued effects of oil on land and in water. But no one is talking about it.
For Fortunah Jacob, fishing is not just a food source, it is her sole source of income. She fixes nets for fishermen, whose catches are becoming fewer and fewer as the effects of unceasing oil spills take their toll.
Nyinama Amos is a youth leader in Oloibiri, Bayelsa. Farming has been the main source of income for his family for generations, but the oil spills have ruined their land. Billion-dollar oil corporations are destroying the lives of the people in Bayelsa as these spills continue to have a devastating impact. These corporations are refusing to take responsibility as the people continue to suffer.
The livelihoods of people in Bayelsa rely heavily on the availability of healthy fish to catch, but recurring oil spills are polluting the rivers and killing the fish.
Gift Ayaowei is a farmer in Bayelsa. Recurring oil spills are killing her crops, and finding something to harvest is a daily struggle. Failing crops is one of the reasons more than 40 000 children in Bayelsa are malnourished.
As a doctor in Bayelsa, Dr Fabian Ejakpovi sees the daily impact on his community’s health brought by oils spills. The community, young and old, is suffering from skin rashes, vomiting, liver damage to cancer, naming but a few.
Lobia is a 67-year-old fisherman living in Bayelsa,
struggling, like much of the community, to make a living. Oil continuously seeping into the river pollutes the water, poisoning fish as a result. Because of this Lobia can’t fish and is without work. These constant oil spills in Bayelsa are ruining the lives of its people and has left them struggling with food shortages.
In addition to struggling with polio, Caroline Macaulay’s business is suffering as the community of Bayelsa continues to battle the devastating effects of oil spills. These spills ruin their crops and poison their food. Greedy multinational oil corporations are destroying the lives of Bayelsa’s community, and the world is looking the other way.
