Wilson Akpan

Between responsibility and rhetoric: some consequences of CSR practice in Nigeria's oil province

This article brings together some of the findings of a three-year study of the community dimensions of upstream petroleum operations in Nigeria, Africas largest oil exporter. It examines the corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices of transnational petroleum-producing companies, focusing on the immediate and long-term ethnographic and social consequences of such practices on the local communities where oil extraction takes place. The article examines, more importantly, how such practices and the identified consequences intersect with the regulatory/institutional framework governing upstream petroleum operations in Nigeria. By shifting attention away from the dominant, ethnic view of conflict and instability in the country of study, and looking at specific instances of ethnographic and social crisis associated with corporate social responsibility, the article offers some insights into some present-day challenges to sustainable development in Africa, and unveils an important present-day mechanism through which the image of resource-rich African countries as strife-torn is entrenched.

Corporate citizenship in the Nigerian petroleum industry: a beneficiary perspective

Based on ethnographic data from Nigerias oil-rich and gas-rich Niger Delta region, and relevant secondary data, this article presents a case for a beneficiary-centred approach to analysing and reporting on corporate citizenship, and for a shift from the dominant top-down approach. It addresses one key question: What do the experiences of people who share their socio-ecological and cultural neighbourhoods with petroleum operators say about some specific practices of corporate citizenship? The article does not present an anti-theory of corporate citizenship or of the broader sustainable development debate. Rather, it relates a counter-narrative informed by the new scramble for natural resources in Africa and the experiences and stories of respondents in communities targeted by corporate citizenship initiatives. The paper offers a modest empirical basis for re-examining how corporate citizenship affects local communities and how it can be made a powerful mechanism for empowering them.

When corporate citizens ‘second-class’ national citizens: The antinomies of corporate-mediated social provisioning in Nigeria's oil province

Abstract This article explores the contradictions of corporate-aided social provisioning and shows how such contradictions impact on social existence in three oil- and gas-producing communities in Nigeria. It is based in part on the findings of the authors ethnographic work in the three communities. The analysis extends the growing scholarly debate that when the state abandons its developmental obligations to the citizenry, and business voluntarily steps into the centre stage of social provisioning by way of corporate citizenship, the resulting interventions could have profound counter-developmental consequences, especially at the grassroots.

Soil erosion and dam dividends: science facts and rural ‘fiction’ around the Ntabelanga dam, Eastern Cape, South Africa

Large dams can play an important role in rejuvenating economic and social development but are often associated with environmental degradation. The Mzimvubu Water Project will involve the building of two large multi-purpose dams, namely Ntabelanga and Laleni. A key anticipated benefit of the former is the expansion of irrigated agriculture. This article reveals that large areas surrounding the dam are, however, severely affected by soil erosion and that irrigation on these areas is likely to be unsustainable. Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) and interviews were held with members of two communities that will be affected by the dam to gauge community sentiments and anticipations. The FGDs revealed that despite respondents lived experiences of soil erosion, local narratives about it appear irreconcilable with geophysical facts. The one crucial anticipated dam dividend appeared to be support for large-scale irrigated agriculture. Rural anticipations that irrigated agriculture can counteract soil degradation caused by erosion are not supported by scientific evidence, and without appropriate community awareness programmes by the dam developers, the divergence between science facts and local views may in the future engender conflict between the community and other stakeholders.

In search of a developmental university: community engagement in theory and practice

Partly as a response to government mandates, pressures from civil society and the business sector, and the socio-economic realities in their immediate neighbourhoods, universities are increasingly venturing into activities that reach beyond their traditional function. Subsumed under concepts such as ‘community engagement’, ‘community service’, ‘university–community partnership’, ‘social responsiveness’, ‘academic citizenship’, ‘service learning’ and a number of other aliases, these activities aim not only to bring universities closer to the vortex of today’s socio-economic developmental challenges, but also – arguably – to enhance the relevance of universities in the 21st century. One of the clearest statements of this new mandate is contained in the South African Department of Education White Paper 3 (A Programme for Higher Education Transformation). According to the White Paper, universities must ‘promote and develop social responsibility and awareness amongst students of the role of higher education in social and economic development through community service programmes’. Universities were traditionally known for their devotion to teaching and research; now the argument seems to be that a ‘triple mandate’ of teaching–learning, research and

Use of non-emergency contraceptive pills and concoctions as emergency contraception among Nigerian University students: results of a qualitative study

BackgroundEmergency contraception (EC) can significantly reduce the rate of unintended pregnancies and unsafe abortions especially in sub-Saharan Africa. Despite the increasing awareness of EC among educated young women in Nigeria, the rate of utilisation remains low. This study therefore explores the main barriers to the use of EC among female university students by analysing their knowledge of emergency contraception, methods ever used, perceived efficacy, and its acceptability.MethodsThis paper brings together the findings from several focus groups (N = 5) and in-depth interviews (N = 20) conducted amongst unmarried female undergraduate students in two Nigerian universities.ResultsParticipants considered the use of condom and abstinence as the most effective methods of preventing unplanned pregnancy. However, many participants were misinformed about emergency contraception. Generally, participants relied on unconventional and unproven ECs; Ampiclox, “Alabukun”, salt water solution, and lime and potash and perceived them to be effective in preventing unplanned pregnancies. Furthermore, respondents’ narratives about methods of preventing unwanted pregnancies revealed that inadequate information on emergency contraception, reliance on unproven crude contraceptive methods, and misconception about modern contraception constitute barriers to the use of emergency contraception.ConclusionsThe findings suggested that female university students are misinformed about emergency contraception and their reliance on unproven ECs constitutes a barrier to the use of approved EC methods. These barriers have serious implications for prevention of unplanned pregnancies in the cohort. Behavioural interventions targeting the use of unproven emergency contraceptive methods and misperceptions about ECs would be crucial for this cohort in Nigeria.

Who benefits from free institutional delivery? evidence from a cross sectional survey of North Central and Southwestern Nigeria

BackgroundThe reasons for low utilisation of maternal health services in settings where the user-fee removal policy has been implemented continue to generate scholarly debates. Evidence of whether user-fee removal benefits the poor women in underserved settings is scanty and inconsistent. This article examines use of maternal health care services in the context of free maternal healthcare and profiles the beneficiaries of user-fee removal.MethodsThe study adopted a descriptive design. A three-stage cluster sampling method was used to select a representative sample of 1227 women who gave birth between 2011 and 2015. Questionnaires were administered using a face-to-face interview approach and data generated were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics.ResultsThe analysis shows that the use of maternal healthcare services has improved considerably in North Central and Southwestern Nigeria. While socioeconomic and geographical inequality in the use of maternal healthcare services appear to be disappearing in Southwestern Nigeria, it appears to be widening in North Central Nigeria. The findings indicate that 33.6% of women reported to have benefitted from the free child-delivery programme; however, substantial variation exists across the two regions. The proportion of beneficiaries of user-fee removal policy was highest in urban areas (35.9%), among women belonging to the middle income category (38.3%), among women who gave birth in primary health centres (63.1%) and among women who resided in communities where there was availability of health facilities (37.2%).ConclusionThe study concludes that low coverage of the free maternal health programme, especially among women of low socioeconomic status residing in underserved settings is among the reasons for persistent poor maternal health outcomes in the context of free maternal healthcare. A model towards improving maternal health in underserved settings, especially in North Central Nigeria, would entail provisioning of health facilities as well as focusing on implementing equitable maternal health policies.

Africa Ambushed: Sociological Images of Capitalist Benevolence and Brigandage

ABSTRACT Writing decades ago about Africa’s experience of “international” trade during the 16th to 20th centuries, the great African historian, Kenneth Onwuka Dike (1917–1983), made a sociologically poignant remark about what he termed the “ingrained instincts of piracy” – instincts he believed were the constant amidst the mutating contents, contours and stratagems of capitalist enterprise. Dike made two grim interrelated diagnoses about capitalism on account of these instincts. One, it is these instincts that ultimately frustrated all efforts by governments and society in crafting a code of conduct to regulate commerce. Two, every regulation designed to imbue capitalism with a modicum of humaneness has ultimately been rendered unworkable because of these same instincts. In this article, “pirate capitalism” is put forward not only as a didactic tool for dissecting the antinomical impulses of historical capitalism, but also as a distinct social form whose present-day pathological character in Africa is amply displayed in a hideous balance of benevolence and brigandage. The article submits that with pirate capitalism now a dominant index of business-government and business-society relations, Africa remains ambushed, with much of capitalisms claimed benevolence being, at best, a tragedy of good intentions, and at worst, a debilitating series of phoney gestures.

Maternal health care visits as predictors of contraceptive use among childbearing women in a medically underserved state in Nigeria

BackgroundHealth care visits during pregnancy, childbirth and after childbirth may be crucial in expanding the uptake of contraceptive care in resource-poor settings. However, little is known about how health care visits influence the uptake of modern contraception in Nigeria. The focus of this paper was to examine how health care visits influence the use of contraceptives among parous women in a medically underserved setting.MethodsThe study adopted a descriptive survey design. Data was collected from 411 women who gave birth between 2010 and 2015 selected through a two-stage cluster random sampling technique. Health care visits for antenatal care services, childbirth, postnatal care and modern contraceptive were dichotomised (yes, no). Descriptive analyses were performed, and percentages, frequencies and means were reported. Multiple logistic regressions were computed, and odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were calculated.ResultsKnowledge of all contraceptive methods was lowest among women who reside in rural areas. Health care visits for antenatal care (UOR 4.5; 95% CI 2.0–10.5), childbirth (UOR2.1; 95% CI 1.4–3.2) and postnatal care services (UOR 2.3; 95% CI 1.5–3.5) independently predict ever use of any contraceptive methods. Likewise, health care visits for antenatal care (UOR 5.6; 95% CI 2.1–14.8), childbirth (UOR 2.3; 95% CI 1.5–3.6) and postnatal care services (UOR 2.8; 95% CI 1.8–4.5) were independent predictors of current use of modern contraceptive methods. In the adjusted model, health care visits for antenatal care services (AOR 3.2; 95% CI 1.1–8.8) were significantly associated with the use of modern contraceptive methods.ConclusionHealth care visits significantly predict the use of modern contraceptive methods. Expanding access to health care services would potentially increase contraceptive use among childbearing women in the medically underserved settings.

Debating stakeholder reciprocity: understanding the stakeholders’ duties in corporate social responsibility in a Zimbabwean mining town

The limited understanding of the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and development is attributed to the overemphasis on the actions and inactions of corporations without focusing on other core issues such as stakeholder reciprocity. The point of departure for this study is that although it is well acknowledged that stakeholders have rights which must be respected, it must also be noted that they have duties they have to fulfil which have direct implications on the firm. As a result of such arguments, this study assesses how reciprocal relationships between the corporation and CSR stakeholders affect or impact on the failures or success of CSR projects meant for development purposes. The major corporation in this study is Zimplats mining company, the community is Mhondoro-Ngezi, and the stakeholders are clearly identified in the study. Using a triangulated design, this study noted that despite Zimplats operating with an integrated CSR framework that acknowledges stakeholders such as local leaders, government, politicians and community members, there is little evidence to suggest the reciprocal contributions made by these stakeholders towards the realization of CSR objectives. Therefore the resulting factor is that CSR initiatives fail to address the developmental concerns of the various stakeholders. The study concludes that there is a crisis of reciprocity in the CSR process in Mhondoro-Ngezi and that a situation where the conceptualization of local development needs and the deployment of specific development tools seem to be driven by one stakeholder almost to the exclusion of all others can only present contradictory development outcomes.