The Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) needs additional funding to complete outstanding environmental cleanup projects in Ogoniland, Rivers State, the House of Representatives Committee on Host Communities has said.
The committee made the call after a two-day oversight visit to HYPREP project sites, highlighting the need for sustained financing to address decades of pollution in the oil-producing region.
Committee Chairman Dumnamene Dekor said the initial funds provided for the cleanup had been utilised, while the scope of work had grown beyond initial expectations.
He urged oil companies and other parties responsible for the pollution to provide more money to support the remaining work.
“The initial fund was like a take-off grant. So, we have taken off much more than was expected,” Dekor said, calling on the companies involved to increase their contributions.
He identified the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, Renaissance Africa Energy Company, formerly Shell, and other partners as contributors to the cleanup, urging them to continue funding the programme.
Dekor also noted that some heavily polluted sites remained complex and would require further work.
HYPREP Project Coordinator, Professor Nenibarini Zabbey, said the agency was implementing more than 120 projects across different areas of intervention.
These include soil and shoreline remediation, provision of potable water, hospital improvements, job creation and skills development for young people and women.
Zabbey said the committee’s visit provided an opportunity to assess progress firsthand and recommend improvements to the programme.
The Ogoni cleanup is a major environmental remediation effort aimed at addressing the effects of oil pollution in the Niger Delta.
However, completing outstanding projects will depend partly on the availability of adequate funding and continued contributions from those responsible for the pollution.
