Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF) calls for urgent action to protect the Edumanom Forest Reserve (now Edumanom National Park) in Bayelsa State while safeguarding the rights, livelihoods and wellbeing of the communities that have lived alongside and depended on the forest for generations. Conservation cannot succeed through exclusion, unclear boundaries or the neglect of the people expected to protect the ecosystem.
Edumanom Forest Reserve, proposed in 1930 as part of the colonial forestry initiatives in southern Nigeria, is a vital freshwater swamp forest wetland within the Niger Delta and home to endangered wildlife like Nigeria’s remaining chimpanzee population; the forest, which cuts across 41 communities in Ogbia and Nembe LGAs of Bayelsa State since 2020 has been catalogued in the World Database on Protected and Conserved Areas (WDPCA) managed by UNEP-WCMC and recognised by Nigeria’s Federal Department of Forestry.
During a three-day community engagement in Opume, Ogbia Local Government Area, kings, chiefs, elders, community representatives and women from communities associated with the reserve across Ogbia and Nembe LGAs raised serious concerns about inadequate forest protection, declining biodiversity, pollution, deteriorating livelihoods and the absence of essential infrastructure. Their testimonies exposed the gap between the ambition to conserve nature and the realities confronting the people living closest to it.
The engagement, organised under the programme Accelerating Nature and Climate Action to Advance Nigeria’s Net Zero and 30×30 Targets, comprised a dialogue with 25 chiefs and elders, general training involving 50 participants, and a women-focused session with 25 participants. Across the three days, one message remained clear: the future of the forest cannot be separated from the future of its host communities.
Map the Forest, Recognise Community Rights
One of the communities’ most pressing demands is a comprehensive physical land survey to establish the reserve’s exact boundaries, perimeter and area in square kilometres. They insist that ground-based surveying, rather than aerial mapping alone, must be prioritised, with communities involved before decisions are made about the land.
King Ekine Amakiri of Sabatoru said communities would establish their own subgroup to engage with the national park project, expressing concern that waiting for government action could leave them vulnerable to exclusion. He warned that mapping undertaken without community consent could result in residents losing access to lands and resources on which their livelihoods depend.
HOMEF maintains that communities must not be treated as obstacles to conservation or merely as beneficiaries of decisions taken elsewhere. Their participation must be meaningful, informed and sustained. Mapping and demarcation must respect legitimate community land interests, incorporate local knowledge and provide transparent processes for resolving disputes.
The absence of clear signposts and visible protective measures also leaves the forest vulnerable to encroachment, indiscriminate hunting and logging. His Royal Highness Douglas Onungu of Ogbema/Fikoruama community, lamented the lack of visible government action to identify and protect the reserve.
“When people come in there, they say, ah, this place is a place that we can go and kill a wild animal because there is no signpost showing that this is a reserve forest,” he said.
HOMEF calls on the Bayelsa State and Federal Governments to work with host communities to survey and clearly demarcate the reserve, install appropriate signposts, establish effective community-inclusive protection systems and ensure that conservation measures do not dispossess residents.
A Forest Under Pressure, Livelihoods Under Threat
Community members reported that several indigenous tree species, including including Igbodo (rubber tree), Agali (Cotton tree), Ogboro (mahogany) and bush pear, had disappeared or become increasingly scarce. They also described declining sightings of gorillas, antelopes and squirrels, as well as diminishing supplies of snails and periwinkles.
Participants attributed these changes to deforestation, logging, oil and gas activities, pollution, noise and population growth. These accounts require systematic ecological investigation, but they provide important local evidence that must not be dismissed in conservation planning.
Women described how environmental degradation and pollution were affecting farming, fishing and household food security. Participants from Otuabagi and Etie Ama reported declining crop yields, fewer fish in rivers and the disappearance or scarcity of indigenous food varieties, including some cocoyam and snail species. Some said cassava tubers now rotted more quickly, forcing earlier harvesting and increasing the risk of losses.
Residents also reported dark, discoloured rainwater and expressed concerns about pollution-related health problems. Women described skin conditions, joint pain and other illnesses they associated with environmental contamination. These testimonies underscore the urgent need for independent environmental and public-health assessments rather than leaving communities to bear the burden of uncertainty.
Women from Otuabagi announced that oil facilities left behind by Shell continued to affect their environment. They made referenced to a study conducted by Kebetkache Women Development Centre which reported that women in Otuabagi had an alarming degree of hydrocarbons in their blood. Such reports demand immediate action, including decommissioning of abandoned oil infrastructure, potential contamination pathways and the responsibilities of relevant operators and regulators.
HOMEF calls for transparent environmental monitoring, as well as implementation of the Bayelsa environmental genocide report and Kebetkache report on Otuabagi women. Where pollution and ecological damage are established, responsible parties must be held accountable, and affected environments and livelihoods must be restored.
Conservation Without Healthcare and Livelihoods Is Incomplete
For the host communities, protecting the forest is inseparable from addressing poverty, inadequate infrastructure and limited livelihood opportunities.
Women called for functional, properly equipped hospitals, support for farming and small businesses, and opportunities to participate in forest protection. Some participants disclosed that crude oil had been used traditionally as a home remedy for ailments, including convulsions and cough, without understanding its toxicity. Crude oil is poisonous and must not be swallowed or applied as treatment. The accounts reinforce the need for accessible healthcare and sustained public-health education.
Community representatives also highlighted the lack of access roads. They said the Okoroba-Opume road, reportedly awarded by the Niger Delta Development Commission in 2012, remained uncompleted, restricting access to communities and the forest. The status of the project should be verified and the responsible authorities required to account for its delivery.
The communities proposed that trained local residents be employed as forest guards, arguing that their knowledge of the terrain would strengthen monitoring and protection. They also called for the restoration of disappearing tree species and an end to destructive logging.
HOMEF supports community-led conservation and ecological restoration that provide meaningful roles for local people. Host communities should not be expected to protect a forest while their livelihoods are undermined and basic needs remain unmet. Conservation plans must include practical livelihood support, ecological restoration, accessible public services and fair opportunities for communities to benefit from protecting their environment.
Roads, Restoration and Accountability Must Follow Dialogue
HOMEF recognises that the Edumanom engagement is a step towards building community understanding and participation. However, meetings must lead to concrete action. The concerns and proposals raised by residents should inform project design, government decisions and the work of all implementing partners.
Cadmus Atake-Enade, HOMEF’s Programs Manager for Fossil Politics, said information gathered during the engagement would be documented and shared with relevant stakeholders to guide subsequent interventions. The wider programme includes forest restoration, skills acquisition, locally rooted enterprise development and a mini-grid component to address community energy needs.
HOMEF urges the Federal and Bayelsa State Governments, relevant environmental authorities, the Niger Delta Development Commission and project partners to:
- Conduct a participatory ground survey to establish the reserve’s boundaries, area and perimeter, with the informed involvement of affected communities and respect for legitimate land rights.
- Provide visible and effective forest protection, including signposts, community-based monitoring and enforcement against illegal logging and destructive hunting.
- Investigate biodiversity loss and pollution, conduct independent environmental and public-health assessments, and ensure that verified damage is addressed through restoration and accountability.
- Restore indigenous trees and other ecological resources in consultation with communities, while protecting the forest’s biodiversity and natural regeneration.
- Address access and basic services, including the longstanding concerns over the Okoroba-Opume road, healthcare and safe water.
- Support community livelihoods, including sustainable farming, local enterprises, skills development and paid roles for residents in forest monitoring and restoration.
- Ensure transparent, continuous consultation, with particular attention to communities most directly affected by proposed boundaries, restrictions and management arrangements.
The Edumanom Forest Reserve must not become another conservation initiative in which the ecosystem is prioritised on paper while the people who live with its consequences are excluded from decisions. Nor should community hardship be used to justify further ecological destruction. The way forward is conservation rooted in justice, local knowledge, ecological responsibility and respect for community rights.
As Onungu observed, “The forest is our future hope.” HOMEF affirms that this future must belong to the host communities as well as the generations to come. Protecting Edumanom requires protecting its biodiversity, restoring damaged environments and ensuring that communities have a decisive voice in shaping the forest’s future.
The call is clear: map the forest with the people, protect it with the people, and ensure that conservation delivers ecological and social justice.