Community-led conservation in the Niger Delta
Along Nigeria’s southern shoreline is a region rich with ecosystems that contain extraordinary natural resources: the Niger Delta. Part of the Guinean Forests of West Africa, an internationally recognized biodiversity hotspot, it is home to the world’s third-largest mangrove forest and Africa’s second-largest swamp forest ecosystem.
Despite its ecological importance, the Niger Delta is one of the world’s most degraded environments. In 2013, Nigerian conservationist Rachel Ikemeh visited the area for the first time. To her dismay, she discovered a forest floor knee-deep in crude oil. As the epicentre of Nigeria’s oil industry, the Delta has been subjected to an estimated 7,000 oil spills. The pollution has forced fishing communities to take up logging, causing further degradation of the Delta’s unique habitats.
