Outcome Report Global Field Exercise (GFE) Africa: Ibadan Unit ...

Outcome Report

Global Field Exercise (GFE) Africa:

Ibadan Unit 2013-2014

By

YIN SHENGLE, ZHOU TIANYI, YAMADA TINA, WARATHIDA CHAIYAPA, TIFFANY LARAINE TAN CHUA,

JARKKO HENRIK HAVAS

Graduate Program in Sustainability Science

- Global Leadership Initiatives (GPSS-GLI)

University of Tokyo

March 2014

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Table of Contents

1.1 Purpose and outline of GFE Africa: Ibadan Unit .............................................................. 4

1.2 Pre-departure activities .................................................................................................... 5

1.2.1 Phase 0: Planning of research theme (April 2013 – February 2014) .................................. 5

1.2.2 Phase 1. Intensive Preparatory Study (November 2013) .................................................. 6

1.2.3 Phase 2. Student Communication (December 2013 - February 2014) ................................ 7

1.3 Introduction to Phase 3: Themes, research questions, and field visit sites .......................... 8

2. Thematic Group Reports ....................................................................................................... 9

2.1 Bottom-up group .............................................................................................................. 9

2.1.1 Methods ..................................................................................................................... 9

2.1.2 Research questions ...................................................................................................... 9

2.1.3 Proposed findings for relevant sites ............................................................................... 9

2.1.4 Suggestions ............................................................................................................... 13

2.1.5 Conclusion ................................................................................................................ 14

2.2 Top-down group ............................................................................................................ 14

2.2.1 Methods ................................................................................................................... 14

2.2.2 Research questions .................................................................................................... 16

2.2.3 Proposed findings for relevant sites ............................................................................. 17

2.2.4 Suggestions ............................................................................................................... 22

2.2.5 Conclusion ................................................................................................................ 23

3. Conclusions ......................................................................................................................... 26

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3.1 Reflection of activities ...................................................................................................... 26

3.2 General conclusions ......................................................................................................... 27

3.2.1 Research theme ......................................................................................................... 27

3.2.2 Nigeria’s sustainable development .............................................................................. 28

3.3 Suggestions for future GFE Nigeria ................................................................................... 29

Group photo of GFE-Ibadan

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1. General Introduction Global Field Exercise (GFE) Africa is a core exercise course of the GPSS-GLI program, designed to

expose students to the reality of the developing world and to provide opportunity for exercising

leadership initiatives in a group setting. This document aims to report on the processes and learning

outcomes of the experience of the Ibadan Unit in addition to serving as reference for future GFE.

1.1 Purpose and outline of GFE Africa: Ibadan Unit

The overall purposes of GFE Africa are described below.

1) Participation in collaborative learning with partner institutions in Africa to jointly construct

international platform for sustainability research and education;

2) Targeted learning outcomes:

• To deepen students’ understanding of sustainability issues through conduction of fieldwork in the developmental context of Africa;

• To improve students’ skills for applying field research method; and

• To gain experience in exercising initiative in a group conducted in trans-boundary, cross-cultural settings.

For the Ibadan Unit in particular, the objectives are translated into the following:

1) To expose the students (Masters/Ph.D) to field conditions in order to deepen their understanding

of sustainability science, especially through practical application of theoretical or conceptual

knowledge;

2) To provide the students an opportunity to exercise their initiative and leadership in a group

setting; and

3) To deepen their understanding about the real situation in the Nigerian context, in terms of natural

resource conservation and sustainable development.

The exercise was initiated in April of 2013, a number of preparatory activities succeeded, then finally

led up to the fieldwork in Nigeria from February 16th to March 1st, 2014. Activities were planned and

implemented in collaboration with the University of Ibadan. There were periodic joint sessions with

student and faculty members of the GFE Africa: Cape Town Unit in the course of preparations, and

there were additional opportunities for interacting with faculty from the University of Nairobi and the

University of Cape Town.

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1.2 Pre-departure activities

Preparation activities may be organized into the following phases preceding departure to Nigeria:

Phase 0: Planning of research theme

Phase 1: Intensive preparatory study

Phase 2: Student communication

1.2.1 Phase 0: Planning of research theme (April 2013 – February 2014)

1. Formulation of GFE Ibadan

The first GFE Africa Guidance took place on April 24, 2013. This was followed by a number of

informal meetings with GPSS students interested in taking the exercise course to hear their views

about expectations for the two destinations (Ibadan and Cape Town), and to raise ideas for possible

thematic focuses. Survey responses on thematic interests indicated that the students in the Ibadan Unit

were overall interested in sustainable resource management and environmental conservation in rural

areas.

2. Discussions on overall thematic focus

The visit of two faculty members from UI, Prof. Labode Popoola and Prof. Emmanuel Aiyede to

GPSS at the time of TICAD V provided an opportunity for students’ consultation with the professors

on topical concentration. Once it was decided to pursue the subject of natural resource conservation in

the context of sustainable development, efforts were made to develop the main research question,

“How local communities are affected by conservation policies where natural resource conservation

programs are implemented” and subsequently, the sub-group themes in order to address the issue in a

structured manner.

3. Discussions on thematic sub-groups

Knowledge of conservation efforts in Old Oyo National Park and Osun Grove gained from the

meeting with the UI faculty led us to form the idea of viewing the situation from two contrasting

perspectives: top-down and bottom-up. The finalized plan was for one group to focus on “How natural

resource conservation policies (or the lack of it) affect the livelihoods of people living in and around

the field visit locations”, and in turn, for the other to examine “How local people are able to affect the

policy-making process and/or engage in the conservation activities”.

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1.2.2 Phase 1. Intensive Preparatory Study (November 2013)

1. Peer-learning sessions with the UI Team

A two-week preparatory study took place from Nov.18th to Dec. 1st, 2013. Visiting students and

faculty from the Center for Sustainable Development, University of Ibadan and professors from

University of Cape Town and University of Nairobi participated in a number of activities including

lectures, field trips, and presentations on various topics related to sustainable development, indigenous

knowledge, livelihood, education, urban-rural linkages, natural resource conservation, etc. Through

the sharing of opinions and experiences, participants were able to begin to understand with greater

clarity the current reality in Africa, as well as the views of people inside and outside.

1) Lectures

"The place of Africa in the world: Views from within and outside Africa" by Dr. Olanrewaju

Olaniyan (UI), Dr. Divine Fuh (UCT)

“Contextualizing African cities and villages” by Dr Fuh

“Natural resource conservation and sustainable development in Africa” by Prof. Labode

Popoola (UI)

“Rural-urban migration for sustainable development in Africa” by Prof. Labode Popoola and

Prof. David Mungai (University of Nairobi)

2) Field Visits

Toyofuta Elementary School (Kashiwa city, Chiba)

Kashiwa Municipal Administration (Kashiwa city, Chiba)

Sawara Agricultural Produce Supply Center (Katori City, Chiba)

Pal-System Coop. Association (Saitama City, Saitama)

Traditional doll-making industry (Saitama City, Saitama)

Traditional polenta furniture industry (Saitama)

Major issues and findings concerning natural resource conservation and sustainable development in

Africa included the following:

Nigeria, as is the whole continent of Africa, is rich in natural resources, but due to a number of

political and social factors, it is still searching for ways of realizing management practices that

will effectively accelerate development.

Youth are increasingly attracted to ‘easy wealth’ gained from natural resources, which drives

them out of school.

There is need for transparency in resource ownership and for regional capacity building through

projects such as ESDA.

It must be carefully considered how to contextualize ‘conservation’, especially when it stands

up against ‘survival’.

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Photo 1.2.1 Visit to the Sawara Agricultural Produce Supply Center

2. Planning of fieldwork

On November 28th, a meeting with the UI faculty was organized for the formulation of a detailed plan

for fieldwork in Nigeria. Reviewed were the list of scheduled field visit locations, as well as

expectations on what students hoped to gain from this experience. After the decision of thematic

sub-groups in December, the combined list of activities was expanded and finalized.

1.2.3 Phase 2. Student Communication (December 2013 - February 2014)

1. Continued dialogue with the UI Team

Towards the end of the intensive preparatory study, a joint planning session for Phase 2 was held,

where personal contacts were exchanged and a net-based platform for continued discussion with the

UI students was established. The plan was to have informal discussions on general topics on

sustainability and fieldwork utilizing social media, while holding periodic formal meetings via Skype

for face-to-face communication. Eventually, a few ideas and materials were shared online.

2. Logistics

Divisions of roles among team members were decided during the reflection meeting for Phase 1 (i.e.

Overall coordination, Student communication, Logistics, and Scriber). The Logistics members began

preparations for visa application, reservation of flight and accommodation, Yellow Fever vaccination,

prescription of Malaria preventive medicine, and gifts for the receiving institutions, in coordination

with GPSS staff.

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1.3 Introduction to Phase 3: Themes, research questions, and field visit sites

The general theme of GFE-Ibadan was agreed as “Natural resource conservation and sustainable

development”, after carefully considering research interests of group members and the situation of

Nigeria. Students divided into two sub-groups, from the bottom-up perspective or the top-down

perspective, while both differences and commonalities exist amongst the two. The research questions

of the two sub-groups were determined as below.

Bottom-up group: How can local people (living in and around the field visit locations) impact

conservation management and the policy-making process?

Top-down group: How conservation policies (or the lack of it) affect the livelihoods of the

local people?

The team visited 14 sites in three states in Nigeria, which may be divided into three different themes:

1) Conservation issues (Oyo State)

Old Oyo National Park

Park Viewing (Old Oyo National Park)

Igboho/Oyo-Ile

2) Development issues (Osun State)

Salvation Army Middle School

Ayinkunugba Waterfalls

Nike Art Gallery

Omolúàbi Garment Factory

Osun State Government Office

Tuns Farm

Osun Grove

3) Rural community-based industry issues (Lagos State)

Sand Miners

Local Fish Market

Orimedu Community in Akodo Area

Ikosi Community in Agbowa-Ikosi Area

Out of these fourteen sites, the group found six sites that exhibited a bottom-up approach in their

activities: Old Oyo National Park, Igboho/Oyo-Ile, Osun Grove, Sand Mining, the Orimedu

Community in Akodo Area, and the Ikosi Community in Agbowa-Ikosi Area. The non-inclusion of

some sites in our list does not mean that they do not have bottom-up approaches but that we were

unable to witness it during the course of our field exercise.

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2. Thematic Group Reports

2.1 Bottom-up group

2.1.1 Methods

The research methodology applied by the GFE Ibadan Team was mainly qualitative, including

semi-structured interview, modified focused group discussion and observation. In most cases, English

was used as the medium of communication in interviews. However, there were some occasions when

we required help from Ibadan students in translating the local dialect into English. Observation and

interviews were used in all sites while the modified focused group discussion was used at the

sand-mining community.

2.1.2 Research questions

Research questions are comprised of one main question and three sub questions as follows.

Main question:

How can local people impact conservation management and the policy-making process?

Three sub-questions:

1) How do the local people participate in the environmental conservation policy?

2) What are the impacts of local activities on the environment?

3) What is the role of gender in natural conservation?

2.1.3 Proposed findings for relevant sites

1) Park viewing

We had a park-viewing of Old Oyo National Park in the morning of February 19. Before we rode the

bus to enter the park, our guides ensured that we did not carry or wear anything that is red in color as

this may incite animals should we encounter one.

a. As we entered the buffer zone of the park, we were instructed to abide by the park rules: we

cannot take anything out of the park and we cannot bring anything inside as well.

b. We were told that we can take photos but that if we use flash photography in the presence of

animals, our cameras may be taken from us.

c. We were also told that the chance of us seeing an animal at the park is low as we make a lot of

noise as a group.

d. As a bottom-up approach, the park employs local people as staff of the park. This ensures that the

knowledge that local people have of the park is utilized in its maintenance and conservation. They

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believe that they are conserving and protecting the park so that they have something to utilize in

the future.

e. Local people are also employed to do research activities in the park such as determining the trend

of visitors coming into the park, as well as identifying invasive species of plants or animals in the

park and determining what to do with them.

2) Igboho/Oyo-Ile (traditional/ancestral conservation sites)

In the morning of February 20th, students paid a visit to Igboho/Oyo-Ile, a traditional community

under the management umbrella of Old Oyo National Park. After the traditional welcoming ceremony

organized by local king, he guided students to the 4 tombs for 4 passed kings in 16th century. From

the king’s introduction to the history of Igboho/Oyo-Ile and interviews and discussions held among

students and local residents, students were able to gain some provoking findings. Some important

findings are following.

a. The king and local elderly people are not aware of any spontaneous environmental conservation

activities in the community. Local residents are accepting management on their natural

environment passively from the national park, without any bottom-up conservation practices or

involvements in the conservation policy-making processes.

b. Lack of documenting system of the local history and lack of concern on preserving local history

may bring risk of social cultural unsustainability in the area.

c. The traditional local representative, the king, is only seen with a symbolic meaning but no

practical power to represent or strive for the benefit of local people.

d. Even though the tombs are belonging to passed kings, the local people seem not feeling sacred

respectful on the remains. This illustrates the strong touristy of the whole community, which

indicates the local community may have departed from the traditional culture promoted by

national park.

3) Osun-Osogbo Sacred Grove

The dense forest of the Osun Sacred Grove is one of the last remnants of primary high forest in southern Nigeria (UNESCO, 2005). The forest were well preserved and maintained by indigenous people who lived around for centuries, and now the adobe of the goddess of fertility Osun in Yoruba culture is remained in the forms of artwork and written documentation. These are the efforts by Susanne Wenger, an Austrian woman who had contributed her live in the Grove from 1950s. It is she who had collected and documented the traditional legends of Osun from villagers, and then sculptured stories and believes into shape. Osun-Osogbo Sacred Grove was named as UNESCO Heritage Site in 2005, and is a very interesting and an important location in environmental and cultural terms. In this site, the following findings were made.

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a. The forest is preserved in a very good condition, which shows the successful conservation

practices contributed by local residents in years. The sacredness feeling to the forest rooted in the

belief of Yoruba people may contribute a lot on the reason of preserving the forest, and this is

also an important example of bottom-up conservation practices.

b. The 12-day festival has definitely created income for locals, but with the large portion of

immigrant sellers, the benefit to locals may be limited. At the same time, the adverse ecological

impact caused by large number of people is an issue to be stressed. Though the locals had

preserved this location spontaneously in centuries, they are departed from conservation activities

under the current policies. The annual Osun Osogbo festival needed to be better managed in the

future, while considering both benefits to local people and indigenous conservation practices.

c. The site showed a successful example of documenting and utilizing local legends and culture, yet

these efforts were made by foreigners. We hope this example can be a good inspiration to other

similar sites with important cultural remains, where the natural resources and be continued

conserved in the future.

4) Sand miners

We were able to be part of a modified focused group discussion with sand miners in Lagos State. The

sand miners we interviewed had an association that keeps track of all the sand miners in the area. In

the group, we were with the chairman, the vice chairman, the first chairman, and the secretary of the

association. It is required for prospective sand miners to join the association before they can be

allowed to participate in the activities there.

a. A lot of the sand miners used to be fishermen, but as soon as they are limited by their age, they

change occupation.

b. The elders in the association manage administrative work and sell equipment.

c. They collect sand by sand dredging in the lagoon using either a canoe or a bigger boat they call a

‘tog’. The sands they collect are used for different things, but mainly for construction.

d. A big challenge for the sand miners are water hyacinths, which are seaweeds that cause water

icing where they mine for sand. These did not exist in the 1950s and 60s and was said to have

been introduced in 1986-1987 as a response to the oil pollution and after that, the community has

had a hard time dealing with it because they multiply so quickly.

e. The association feels that they will never have to worry about the availability of sand for their

industry as it is renewable. External actors, however, express the threat of erosion should sand be

dredged much faster than they can re-accumulate.

We found that the community can interact with the government on a more local level but is

experiencing problems with miscommunication. An instance we witnessed was how the sand miners

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noted the lack of easily accessible roads to their location while the local government official present

pointed out that they have access roads as funded by the World Bank, JICA, and other sponsors. The

local government official further insisted on the government’s involvement, stating the fact that they

are in the process of looking for companies to make use of the hyacinths that cause water icing in the

area. An improvement in communication, as well as its channels would greatly benefit the community.

5) Orimedu Community in Akodo Area

This community lives near by the sea. There are many migrant fishermen mainly from Ghana. The

researchers spent a couple hours interviewing local people including fishermen and other villagers.

Some important findings are following.

a. There are no regulations on the size of the fish or the fishing methods.

From the interview with several fishermen (from Ghana), there are no either state regulation

or community rules on the size of the fish or the fishing. As a result, fishermen are free to go

fishing anytime they want and use any sizes of the fishing net they prefer. One fisherman

pointed out clearly that he catches everything from the sea.

b. Nigerian fishermen have less capital and fishing technology than those from Ghana.

From the interview, we have met some fishermen from Ghana who have lived in the

community for decades. Many of them, as one interviewee mentioned, have their family

settled down in Nigeria. All interviewees said that Ghanian fishermen have bigger boat and

stronger engine than Nigerian fishermen. One Nigerian man who earns living by making

furniture, told the researchers that he would like to be a fisherman too but he doesn’t have

enough money to buy a boat. Moreover, the government does not provide any financial

assistance for local people.

c. Social disparity between rich and poor fishermen (some fishermen are illegal migrants).

Some fishermen have to work for richer fishermen because they cannot afford to buy their

own boat. The disputes between migrant fishermen and Nigerian fishermen are mentioned by

some interviewees. However, each group has their own chef who helps manage the problems

among themselves or between two groups.

d. The infrastructure is relatively poor. The main problem is that they do not have

electricity. For fresh water, the community has to fetch underground water which is as deep

as 12 feet.

e. The rich fishermen prefer their children to study and have better job.

6) Ikosi Community

The villagers in this lagoon community are dependent on fishery. In this village, the researchers have

chance to talk with local women and several children. The important findings are following.

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a. There are no regulations or limitation on fishing. Each fisherman pays 500 naira for the

community to be able to catch the fish per year. Similarly to the Orimedu community, local

people in Ikosi community enjoy freedom to catch fish. Various sizes of nets are applied to catch

as much as they want. When asked about the change in fish productivity, all of interviewees

mentioned no bad sign. So far they all enjoy the current livelihood and do not feel concerned on

the future of fish capacity or environmental problem. However, it should be noted that villagers

have regulations to keep peace in the community. For example, they are prohibited to have a

shout or quarrel while people are catching fish or processing the smoking fish.

b. Only men go catch fish with the boat; while women and children help processing the fish. It is

noted that one fisherman may have many wives so that they can help in processing the fish. After

men came back with the boat full of fish, women and children will clean the fish and smoke them

before selling to the merchants. However, one fisherman interviewed, has only one wife because

he is Christian.

c. Children have skipped the school to help their parents process the fish. Many children as young as

four years old are helping their mother in cleaning and putting the fish on the grilling. One 15

year-old girl told the researchers that she would like to become a nurse.

d. There is no difference between man and woman in environmental l conservation. It is noted that

both men and women in the community involve in fishery but in different job division.

e. There are cases that women would keep small fish, nurture them in the ponds until they gain bigger size and then sell them with higher prices.

2.1.4 Suggestions

From the findings we proposed above, we suggest local authorities taking following measures on

improving local natural resource management and for sustainable development.

1) Integrate bottom-up and top-down conservation management practices.

2) Document and utilize of indigenous knowledge into natural resource management practices

3) Push for cooperation between local communities and other sectors (NGOs, universities, etc.) on

environmental conservation activities in order to strengthen the involvements in policy-making

processes are suggested.

4) Supporting environmental education furthermore, i.e., improving attendance rate to schools, are

able to help local communities recognize current problem from more long-term and macro

perspectives.

5) Community members should be encouraged to look for more diverse livelihood options. Such

option can be provided by the introduction of environmentally friendly industries, such as

ecotourism, run by local authorities and NGOs.

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Photo 2.1.1 Students conducting interviews in Orimedu (left) and Ikosi (right) communities

2.1.5 Conclusion

The conclusions derived are summarized as follows.

• When facing problems in daily life survival, it is unlikely for communities to think about natural resources conservation. This is because it is hard for them to think about the future as they have to

think about the ‘now’. Survival is something that is day-to-day for them and the concept of

preservation is something that’s still far into the future.

• In Africa, where people’s income can get as low as USD 1-2 per day, there is a false dichotomy between conservation and economic development. The mistaken belief that the environment has to

be sacrificed in order to achieve development still somehow remains.

• Men and women both utilize natural resources but in different ways. We did not find any difference in their concern on conservation issues.

• A big problem is the percentage of out-of-school in some of the places we visited. In places such as the fishing communities, children are expected to work to support their families.

2.2 Top-down group

2.2.1 Methods

The overall objective of Group 2 is to examine “How natural resource conservation policies (or the

lack of it) affect the livelihoods of people living in and around the field visit locations”, focusing on

the top-down approaches of natural resource conservation efforts in Nigeria. Framework for

observations are as shown in Figure 2.2.1. Firstly, observed and potential environmental issues were

clarified in sequence with the existence and nature of policies implemented to address these issues.

Secondly, the combined effect of these two factors on the livelihoods of people living in and around

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the field visit locations were identified. These findings then led to the proposal of recommendations

(i.e. ‘4. Suggestions’) derived from in-group discussions.

Figure 2.2.1 Framework for Observations

Literature review was based mainly on the 11 papers provided by the UI faculty, with additional

reference to other relevant materials collected individually. Field research methods included on-site

observations and semi-structured interviews to local people and policy practitioners as described

below. Sites 5, 6, and 7 required English/Yoruba interpretations on the part of UI students. A video

recorder and cameras were used for documentation.

1) Olumirin Waterfalls

An introductory explanation on the history of the waterfalls by the tour guide was followed by

observations through a trek up to the Level 1 viewpoint.

2) Osun Grove

Participation in a group tour explaining the cultural, historical, and biological significance of the

site led by an employee of the NCMM (National Commission on Museums and Monuments) was

followed by an interview to the tour guide (10 minutes). A 15-minute inventory exercise led by UI

faculty on conserved forest species was also undertaken.

3) Old Oyo National Park

A tour of the park museum was followed by a presentation by the Conservator of Park at the

administration office and 5 minutes of Q&A. Park-viewing on vehicle and on foot was carried out

in the company of a tour guide and Head Ranger. There was additional opportunity for a 15-minute

interview to an Administrative Head manager at one of the accommodation facilities.

4) Tuns Farm

A presentation by managers on farm operations was followed by interviews to the managers during

a tour of the facilities.

5) Epe Sand Miners

An interview to the leaders and members of the sand mining community (30 minutes) was

followed by observation of mining equipment and conditions of the beach area.

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6) Orimedu Marine Fishing Community

An interview to the chief leader and group of fishermen of the community (30 minutes) was

followed by observation of the settlement and fishing equipment (nets, ships, etc.).

7) Ikosi Lagoon Fishing Community

An interview to the chief leader, leader of women and group of fishermen of the community (30

minutes) was followed by observation of the settlement and fishing equipment.

Finally, during the discussions and fieldwork we encountered various occasions where concern was

voiced toward the development of social and economic structures in a wider context. Therefore, we

have attempted to understand and visualize the more general situation of inter-related social and

economic issues on the government and community levels. The outcome of the discussion is described

in the concluding section.

2.2.2 Research questions

The research questions are described below, under the framework for observations. The specific

questions were developed from a joint discussion with the UI students in preparation for fieldwork.

From our objective, questions were focused on the administrative point of view.

1) On ‘Environmental issues’ and ‘Effect on livelihoods’

a. What were the initial conditions of the site and the process in which conservation policies

were developed?

b. What are the changes in environment that have been observed since implementation began?

c. What are the impacts of the environmental changes on livelihoods of the local people?

2) On ‘Policies in effect’ and ‘Effect on livelihoods’

a. What were the conditions of the livelihood of local people before the implementation of

conservation policies?

b. What are the aim, structure, and challenges of conservation management being operated on

the site?

c. What are the changes in livelihoods of the local people that have been observed since

implementation began?

d. Are the common people aware of the policies and do they participate in the policy making

process?

Furthermore, to derive our recommendations for each field visit location, key questions, such as those

listed below, were discussed within the group.

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What are the gaps in current policy?

Are policy makers aware of potential environmental issues and the effects it may cause on the

livelihoods of local communities?

How can the challenges of conservation management be addressed?

How can the positive (negative) effects on livelihood of current conservation practices be

enhanced (mitigated)?

2.2.3 Proposed findings for relevant sites

The proposed findings regarding environmental issues, the policies in effect, and the effect of these

factors on the livelihood of people are as follows.


The issues observed here are the building of tourism infrastructure and trashing. Regarding

facilities, recreational gazebos and stairways were built along the route. Further infrastructure

development to accommodate more tourists may be expected in the future, as the popularity of

the site was apparent from the groups of domestic tourists, particularly school children who were

sighted during the visit. On the issue of trashing, a sign set near the entrance to the waterfalls

displayed guidelines issued by the Osun State Government, indicating the use of wastebaskets

and the prohibition of eating and drinking. However, enforcement seems to be lacking and

children were seen ‘hawking’ at the entrance to the site providing drinks and plantain chips to the

tourists. We were also introduced to the fact that the state government grants permission to

harvest certain herbal plants and to collect spring water from the area – an alternative way in

which the waterfalls support livelihoods.

2) Osun Grove

The Osun Grove was first declared a National Monument in 1965, and then was expanded to

include the entire 75 hectares of ring-fenced forest in 1992. Since 1990 the federal government

has conferred trusteeship of the grove to the Osun State Government and together they have

exercised participatory management to maintain the natural, cultural, and spiritual values of the

historical site. Initially, several local communities existed within the conservation area, but were

later relocated. Some of them, called “worshippers and devotees”, continue to visit the grove for

their daily rituals, and also play a central role in the activities during the festival.

The main issues faced here include the concentration of tourists during the Annual Festival in

August, and the plastic waste in the river. The NCMM employs on-site a curator, security guards,

guides, education officers, masons, traditional artist, carpenters and administrators, however the

number is not enough to deal with the mass of tourists during this period. The plastic waste in the

water is seen as a result of trashing activities upstream.

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Old Oyo National Park has a relatively long history of conservation. Since the 1930s-40s up to

the 1960s-70s, the area was designated as two consecutive forest reserves, at which point they

were jointly turned into the Upper Ogun Game Reserve. Its designation as a National Park in

1991 is seen overall to have positive effects on the management of natural resources, as formerly,

the state government did not have enough funding to support their activities. Positive effects on

the livelihoods of surrounding communities include the building of roads, clinics, schools and

other infrastructure around the park under the “Support Zone Community Project” and

“Conservation Education” programs, where park staff visits nearby schools to teach students

about the importance of conserving nature. Outside the boundaries of the “Buffer Zone”, there is

an area designated as the “Free Zone”, in which people are allowed to practice agriculture as well

as hunting and gathering. The settlements here are mostly made up of foreign residents, from

neighboring countries of Togo and Benin.

The current most critical issue is the loss of wildlife by the activities of poachers from regions

outside the surrounding local areas. A significant change that took place to address this issue

regarding the National Park policy, are the employment of Rangers. The management structure

identified from the interview to the Administrative Head manager is described in Figure 2.2.2.

However poaching continues and as most of their activities occur during the night, it is

increasingly dangerous for the Rangers trying to counteract on these incidences.

Figure 2.2.2 Management Structure of Old Oyo National Park (Feb. 2014)

4) Tuns Farm

It is an impressive broiler chicken-breeding farm which located near the town of Osogbo, and in

which all stages of productions from hatching to meat processing claimed to be produced under

the standards of multinational corporations. We must admit that it is a masterpiece under the

Nigeria situation and much over our imagines as well. Based on our observation, there are some

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issues that have potential effects on livelihoods. The eggs for parent generation are transport all

the way from the Netherlands to Nigeria, then hatched, breeding and eventually turns to be meat

productions, and then the productions are mainly supply to big buyers. All the waste materials

including chemical that used, excrements, remaining organism and so on are claimed to be

collected by the government, through the whole process there might be the potential of leakage

which may lead to effects to surrounding environment.

There might be some negative effects on the surrounding livelihoods. Because of the lack of local

broiler production chain, local people may loss their job opportunities in related area. And further

automation may lead to loss of employment. Meanwhile, its products are mainly supply to big

buyers and we didn’t observe whether the high-tech and modernized operation system has

transferred to surrounding small factories or not, its contributions on promoting the poultry

industry and the food security in the Nigeria might be limited. And the potential chemical leakage

may lead to environmental pollution.

5) Epe Sand Miners

We visited a group of sand miners in the Lagos State whom established a specific association to

regulate sand mining activities. A sand mining permission is required before operating mining

activities. Instead of applying heavy dredging machine, miners here dredge sand using canoe and

boats for which they believe is gentler to environment. Because of the dramatically increased

sand price, which increased almost ten times in the past 20 years, the sand business is running

very well, and local people are holding a very positive point of view that sand resource is as

renewable as fishery resource. Different from our imagine, no much coastal erosion was observed

based on local people, while the water hyacinths is regarded as the main challenge for miners.

Those seaweed were imported aiming at reduce water pollution, but it turns out to be biological

invasion. In local people’s point of view, the job as a sand miner is an alternative option for

fishermen who are no longer competent for fishing activities, and regarding the considerable

income most of them are willing to transfer this job to next generation.

The sand mining activities have both positive and negative effects on local livelihoods. From a

positive point of view, sand mining activities not only providing sand materials for constructions

but also provide job opportunities for local communities, and to some extents the certification

system contributes t discouraging illegal sand mining. While on the other hands, it also brings

some negative effects. It may lead to coastal erosion which may further leading to reduced

protection from storms, tsunamis, and wave events. Degradation of near shore marine ecosystems

leads to destruction of fish habitats and cause damage to fisheries eventually. And the health

condition of labor under intensive mining activities should draw more attention.

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It is a marine fish community in Akodo Area and most of the fishermen are immigration mainly

from Ghana. In their community, the boat owners are responsible to do registration and pay for

fishing license while no specific tax system regarding fishing harvest. The most costly part of the

boat would be the engine and the owners don’t have the eager to modernize the equipments to

peruse more harvest. Fishermen in this area still following the fishing experiences which were

taken down from generations, they lunch out at night and chase fish by the guide of wind

direction, then when they return all the harvest will be collected by women and sell in the local

fish markets. Here are some observations that we made regarding the environmental issues. We

noticed high density of excrements on the beach or even in the seawater while many young

children were playing and resting there. Regarding the fishing methods, the fishermen we

interviewed claim that they paid attention on the size of net that they are using and release

juvenile fish if they caught by accident. However, the net size that we observed is still below the

standard and juvenile fish were caught.

Figure 2.2.3 Overview of sand mining and coastal line

We must admit that fishery offering jobs to local community as main income, but at the same it

brings some negative effects to surrounding livelihoods. Regarding the excrements on the beach,

it may threat local sanitation safety, such as pollute local drinking water, excrements may turns to

be the medium for bacteria, meanwhile the high mobility of young children as susceptible

populations may contribute to the threaten. Regarding the local fishing methods, it may

eventually lead to over-fishing.


It is a fishing community that settled in Agbowa-Ikosi area, Lagos State for around 300 years, and

we interviewed the present chairman, his father who is the previous chairman, his mother who is

still the leader in the fishing business, and many other local people. Though fishing is their main

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income, many different kinds of activities also conducting here, such as water transport, hunting,

agriculture and so on. With the long history of fishing, they have gained extensive experience on

seasonal variation of fish stock and have formed a practical operation system and schedule that

lunched out from 4 p.m. while returning with harvest around 2 to 3 a.m. their wives would be

waiting and ready to sell those harvest to local fishery market. Local people are aware of the harm

of capture juvenile fish and showed us the two-finger size net, though there are still some

extremely small fish caught in their harvest basket. The same as sand mining activities, their

fishing activities is also threaten by the water hyacinths and they are looking forward to get some

support from government side to tackle this problem. We get to know that the main product for

this lagoon fishing community is smoked fish, which is smoked by burning tumbles with the

advantage of easy to be storage in such hot weather.

As the main income for the lagoon fishing community, the fishing activities contribute to the

development the whole community while the resource consumption may lead to some

environmental effects. Decrease in fish stock leading to lower income while capture of juvenile

fish may threaten the health hazards of fish processing, and eventually it may end up as a vicious

circle. Meanwhile, the depletion of fish stock will cause negative changes in ecology. About the

smoking fish, to produce the smoked fish consumes a great amount of tumbles as firewood; it

may lead to building material depletion.

Figure 2.2.4 Oven and semi-manufactured smoked fish

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2.2.4 Suggestions

We arrived at the following suggestions for each of the 7 field visit locations.


The enforcement of waste disposal guidelines and provision of equipment for waste management

are direct measures that could reduce the trashing behavior. Accumulation of litter could work to

damage tourism potentials by lowering the aesthetic value of the site in addition to creating

environmental pressure.

2) Osun Grove

In order to better manage the impacts of the main festival, provision of alternative occasions for

attracting tourists are proposed. On the other hand, the waste management of upstream

settlements may need to be investigated, and short-term countermeasures such as the placement

of waste collection nets should be considered.


Firstly, in order to reduce poaching activities, further promotion of tourism is encouraged for

generating alternative sources of income and addressing poverty. Secondly, enhancing research

opportunities for biologists, sociologists, archaeologists, and others can lead to better

understanding and documentation of situations in the park as well as serving as a source of

income for better management. Although there are currently over Rangers employed within the

park, they take on multiple roles as researcher, tour guide, and security officer. The final

suggestion is to consider the establishment of a separate organizational entity specially trained to

address security issues.

All of the first three sites are areas where natural resources have been utilized for tourism development.

Tourism creates alternative employment opportunities and generates income for management on the

one hand, but on another lead to different forms of environmental damage of the natural resources on

which the people depend. For Osun Grove and Old Oyo National Park, the initial motivation and

priority for government involvement has been conservation. It has been learned that such efforts may

cause different levels of separation or ‘detachment’ of communities from their original sources of

livelihood.

Where conservation comes hand in hand with tourism, if local people can actively participate in

management while maintaining their relationship of gaining direct livelihood benefits from the

resources, their involvement will work towards enhancing tourism potentials as well as promote

effective conservation. Though some participatory management was observed in Osun Grove,

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according to the tour guide, it was questionable whether the economic benefits acquired from tourism

are effectively feeding into the local communities.

4) Tuns Farm

Based on the observation that we made, our suggestions are: a) promote local production for

broiler production chain; b) establishment of environmental standards; c) examine ways to

involve smaller enterprises in a way that would be mutually beneficial.

5) Epe Sand Miners

To tackle the negative effects, our recommendations would be: a) research for monitoring sand

balance between the dredging and regeneration, and the lagoon ecosystem on both invasive water

plants and changes of fishery resources, b) establishment of standards for regulating sand

dredging levels based on the related research, c) and pay more attention on labor conditions.


In order to provide some hints in minimizing the negative effects, we come up with following

suggestions: a) establishment of sanitation procedures and facilities, and educate local people

especially young generation the important of sanitation issues, and protect potential polluting

water body, b) set regulation of net mesh size, and, if possible, monitoring the size of harvest fish,

c) cooperate with university or research institute to study the sustainable catch quotas.


Suggestions from our point of view would be: a) promote multiple income generation, changing

the development pattern from resources consuming into other practical mode; b) Increase

producer income by including more fisher folk in the supply chain. Based on our observation, the

producing activities a mainly based on family as unit though they are producing the same

products in the same method. More cooperation and innovation may contribute in generating

more benefit for whole community; c) creating the ability to plan for the future.

2.2.5 Conclusion

In the previous section, specific suggestions for a selection of field sites were proposed. These

suggestions tackle mostly issues that are specific to problems that the sites are facing, and do not

consider environmental conservation and sustainable development in south western Nigeria in a more

holistic manner. In this conclusion, we attempt to combine issues that we observed in multiple

locations in order to form an overall view of issues related to environmental conservation and

sustainable development in South Western Nigeria.

In many of the field sites, especially Old Oyo National Park and the fishing communities of Lagos

state, we observed that environmental degradation stems from a wide range of other issues. We

developed an issue tree to visualize and categorize societal and environmental issues that lead to

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environmental degradation. The issue tree can be seen in Figure 2.2.5. The issue tree depicts

environmental degradation as a result of a cascade of environmental, community related and

governance related issues. The issues at the top of the figure are at the top of the issue tree hierarchy.

The issue tree is not complete, but displays issues that we found most pressing within the field visit

sites.

Figure 2.2.5 Issue tree stemming from Environmental Degradation

Overuse and detached conservation lie one level up from environmental degradation. These issues are

directly causing environmental degradation and are in turn caused by a variety of societal and

governance issues. In our field visit sites, we were told by locals of over harvesting of timber products,

possible overfishing and poaching as well as possible over hunting. All these methods of

overexploitation are caused by a variety of societal issues. Poverty and lack of environmental

consciousness are directly affecting the use of natural resources. Education is one method of fighting

poverty and increasing environmental consciousness and hence insufficiencies in education are

indirectly responsible for over exploitation. On the other hand, the fact that there is very little work

that is not directly dependent on natural resources in and around the field visit sites is another driver

for the use of natural resources for livelihoods.

Detached conservation is defined as conservation that takes place outside areas where livelihoods are

being practiced. Old Oyo National Park is a good example of detached conservation. This type of

conservation is naturally encouraged, but it should be only a part of the total national conservation

efforts. Namely, areas where people practice their livelihoods should be conserved to an extent where

environmental sustainability is secured while allowing sufficient practice of livelihoods as well. We

did not observe this type of conservation, namely catch quotas or limitations to areas where fishing is

25

being allowed. This lack of conservation this “attached conservation” has led to environmental

degradation as well as to overuse of resources.

Detached conservation is mainly an issue that stems from governance. We learned through literature

review, lectures (Dr. Fregene) and field visits that the local and national governments lack means for

implementing, managing and evaluating environmental conservation policies. For instance, there are

rudimentary policies for fisheries management, but the implementation and monitoring of these

policies does not take place sufficiently. According to Dr. Fregene, this is caused by the lack of

resources within local and national governments. Another observation we made was that Nigeria has

very low tax revenue (0.3% in 2008 according to World Bank). This fact is at the root of many

government and society related issues. There simply are not enough resources to improve livelihoods

and strengthen environmental conservation at the moment.

Insufficient collaboration is mentioned on the top right hand side of Figure 2.2.5. Insufficient

collaboration is broadly defined as lack of efforts to understand and collaborate for improved

livelihoods, sustainable development and environmental conservation on government as well as on

community level. In many field visit sites we observed lack of communication between government

and the communities. Government does not seem to be fully aware of communities’ needs, and the

communities seem to lack means for communicating with decision makers in local governments. In

this type of situation, any development that were to take place would not benefit communities in the

best possible way and hence would not lead to sustainable development. On the other hand,

collaboration within communities was found to be inadequate as well. For example, in the Ikosi

fishing community, fishing and fish processing seemed to take place within family units. Furthermore,

all families were producing the exact same product with each other. This combined with the fact that

fish is transported from the village to markets by middlemen makes it difficult for the fishing families

to ensure a sufficient income. Improved collaboration between families in terms of fish processing

(combining efforts and producing in larger units) and delivery to markets (having a community owned

truck for transportation) could improve livelihoods as well as ensure more sustainable development

within the communities.

Lastly, we noticed that climate change has not been included into long term agriculture and fisheries

planning in Nigeria. The Nigerian government is planning to increase domestic agricultural and

fisheries production in the long term, and not incorporating the effects of climate change to this plan

might lead to ineffective policies. Both agriculture and fisheries rely on seasonal changes, which are

facing increased volatility in the future due to climate change. These uncertainties should be taken into

account when making long term plans for sectors that rely on natural resources.

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The findings discussed here are on issues that seem to prevail widely in rural south western Nigeria.

Many issues stem from poor governance and lack of government resources. This together with other

factors lead to slow communities’ development, and the lack of communities’ development puts

enormous pressure on natural resources. Means to start tackling these issues should be further studied.

However, this goes into a depth that is out of the reach of our study, which attempted to merely depict

the variety of issues and their causal relationships that affect natural environment in Nigeria.

Main References:

1) Babalola, F. 2011. Roles of and Threats to Yoruba Traditional Beliefs in Wilderness

Conservation in Southwest Nigeria. USDA Forest Service Proceedings RMRS-P-64

2) Osun-Osogbo Sacred Grove (Nigeria) No.1118, UCN World Heritage Evaluation Report

May 2005

3) Grandval, F. and Douillet, M., 2011. Nigeria’s Agricultural Policy: Seeking Coherence Within

strategic Frameworks, Grain de sel (51),

4) World Bank Data, Tax revenue (% of GDP),

http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/GC.TAX.TOTL.GD.ZS/countries/NG?display=graph,

accessed on 15.3.2014

3. Conclusions

3.1 Reflection of activities

Positive and negative aspects of all four phases of GFE Ibadan are discussed here. The discussion

includes suggestions for planning of future GFE activities, especially for those heading to Nigeria.

Regarding Phase 0 (Planning of research theme), the major challenge encountered was finding

commonalities among members’ various interests and obtaining the background knowledge to

effectively plan for the fieldwork. The early initiation of GFE, as well as discussions with UI faculty

in the beginning stages proved very helpful in getting started. However, we struggled to understand

what and how to study beforehand. Browsing written material was not very helpful, and more active

discussions with FEFI Africa students should have been carried out in order to gain ideas on

framework. Time management should also be improved greatly, setting early deadlines with regard to

logistics time requirements (visas, vaccinations etc.), and organizing regular study sessions.

Phase 1 (Intensive preparatory study) was well organized by UT faculty and engaging with UI

students was enlightening and helpful for our trip to Nigeria. Although there were some difficulties

regarding participation due to the sudden scheduling of the visit, stronger engagement on the side of

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UT students to plan activities and discuss issues would have made the visit more fruitful for both

parties.

Although ideas and materials were shared briefly within the last few weeks prior to departure, Phase 2

(Student communication) generally lacked interaction from both sides. Finding a suitable medium for

discussion was difficult and interaction suffered from timing of holidays and end of semester exam

periods. It may have been better to start communicating before the UI students’ visit, then to

concretize the structure during their stay.

Phase 3 (Fieldwork in Nigeria) was overall well organized and involved numerous field visits. The

team was exposed to a variety of settings and chances to interact with multiple stakeholders, which

provided invaluable insight into the various aspects of society. The company of UI students for the

entire duration of the trip was highly enriching, being able to learn about differences in study style,

knowledge, and experiences through discussions on a common topic. It also led to further off-campus

activities and cultural exchange. However, it was felt on both sides that the tight scheduling of field

visits, allowed little time for deeper inquiry, and as last minute scheduling changes were often made, it

was sometimes difficult to orient oneself and draw conclusions from what was observed.

3.2 General conclusions

3.2.1 Research theme

Both groups came to very similar conclusions on what issues are important, but were unable to go into

depth on how to solve the issues. This is partly because the time was so limited to investigate each

issue insightfully. Also culture and language have been barriers; thus hindering outsiders like us to

gain full understanding of the situation. Nevertheless, with limited time and knowledge, we have

drawn general conclusions based on our own analysis as following.

For the cases that lacked conservation policy from the government, local people seem to enjoy

utilizing the resources without much awareness of the future use. Moreover, there is no self regulation

or limitation set by the community on the usage of resources. When asked about the expectation on

their children, some of local people (a bit more well-off) mentioned that they prefer their children to

study and have better careers; while some parents try to take their children to help work just to

encourage them to continue the career. However in any cases, we have not seen much concern about

the future quantitative and qualitative change of natural resources but widespread belief that the

resources are the gift from god, which will last forever.

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For the cases which have the conservation policy from the government, the local people are often

excluded from the policy design and implementation. Most of the cases we found that the policies are

solely top-down and strictly prohibiting people from utilizing natural resources. The penalty will be

given to those who violate the policy. This is the big paradox between environmental conservation and

human development.

These two types of case are both extreme. How to find the compromising between the two is thus the

challenge. In a nutshell, we strongly believe that education and poverty issues need to be addressed

before tackling environmental conservation.

3.2.2 Nigeria’s sustainable development

Nigeria is full of natural resources and potential to develop. However there are some challenges for

Nigeria to tackle if it would be able to reach the full potentiality. Several important issues about the

challenges for sustainable development of Nigeria are presented here. It should be noted that the issues

are based our two-weeks research and that we are aware not to be overgeneralize the whole country.

First if all, Nigeria is still a very top-down country. Communication channels are not established, there

is miscommunication among stakeholders in terms of communities’ needs assessment.

Secondly, some communities have good (non-documented) indigenous knowledge on conservation,

but in most of the cases, the indigenous knowledge are not combined with current conservation

policies which is the result from lack of cooperation between government authority and the local

people.

Thirdly, the role of academic as well as non-governmental organization is crucial but not obviously

seen during our two-weeks fieldtrip. From the interview with scholars at UI, the strong support and

good-vision policy initiated by the authority are necessary for university to play leading role in

knowledge and capacity building for Nigerian people.

Fourthly, human resources need development. Education and eliminating corruption are issues that

seem to affect everything.

Last but not least, the infrastructures such as electricity, water, road not to mention internet, need to be

improved throughout the country. This is not only for improving the living standard of Nigerian

people but also for attracting foreign and domestic tourists.

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3.3 Suggestions for future GFE Nigeria

The two-week first-hand experience in Nigeria has been invaluable for all of us. In GFE Ibadan 2014,

we have set the theme for our study as “Natural resource conservation and sustainable development”.

The main reason why we focused on this particular issue is because Nigeria is rich in natural resources

both renewable and non-renewable, such as crude oil. Thus it is very interesting to see how Nigeria

utilizes the ‘bless’ from God, or so it is described, for its development in a sustainable manner.

However, it is worth noting that after just a few visits in the first couple days, we have become

gradually aware that natural conservation and sustainable development are entwined with numerous

other issues. As a result, one cannot make claim that they understand the issue without considering the

links between environmental, socio-cultural, and economic issues. In this regard, we would like to

shed some light on the issues that appeared strongly linked to natural resource conservation and are

worth further examination in the next GFE.

1) Waste management

Waste management will be, if not already, a big issue for Nigeria. The plastic bags and bottles

and organic waste were seen everywhere. Along the road, we have seen large piles of garbage, as

high as 2 meters. It is also common for people to burn their own garbage at home resulting in

smoke from each household spreading to public spaces. The waste management as well as the

garbage segregation practices will thus be important for further investigation.

A pile of garbage burned by the local people near their houses is a common scene we have seen in

Nigeria. The smoke may be hazardous to both human and animals.

Photo 3.1 Roadside garbage dumps

2) Basic education

According to United Nations, the right to be educated is one of the basic human rights. However,

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we have seen many children especially in the fishing community skipping school to help their

parents work at home. Families tend to have a lot of children in order to secure more labor. If this

trend continues, the future opportunities of children, as well as the country’s overall development

may be limited.

Photo 3.2 Children seen during field visits

2) Cooperation among stakeholders

During the interviews to community members in our field visit locations, we would often be

informed that the government has not helped or provided enough basic services. Moreover, the

channel of communication between locals and the government seems not to be available, which is

a hindrance in building a good understanding among each other. As a result, the top-down

approach has been the main and only way to implement policy, which would then end up

affecting the lives of the people negatively. This issue is at the heart of how the various

stakeholders can build a sustainable society together, and may be built on the findings of this

GFE.

3) Food security

Northern Nigeria is the main agricultural area that grows fruits and vegetables, feeding the whole

31

country. In Ibadan, and similarly in other cities located in South Western Nigeria, various kinds

of fruits and vegetables are transported long distances from the north, arriving in deteriorated

quality but sold at high prices. There is concern for food security in the southern regions,

considering the unstable situation in the north as well as the poor transportation infrastructure.

Local production should be promoted to reduce reliance on imported goods.

Photo 3.3 Fruits sold in the local market near fishing community (left) and imported

cookies in the supermarket (right)

4) Energy security

Nigeria is very rich in crude oil reserve. The main income of the country has been derived from

oil for decades. However, fossil fuel is dispensable and causes greenhouse gas emission, which

leads to acceleration of climate change. From our observation and interview with scholars at UI,

alternative and renewable energy sources have not yet been given enough attention. People

heavily rely on oil in both power generation and transportation.

Photo 3.4 Gas station in Ibadan

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5) Climate change adaptation

Issues associated with climate change was not discussed during GFE Ibadan 2014. However, with

a large proportion of the population living under the poverty line, the impact of climate change

and adaptation measures, how to build the capacity of the people especially from a grassroots

approach is an important agenda in the context of Nigeria.

6) Indigenous knowledge documentation

Indigenous knowledge has been proven invaluable in many aspects. However, through our

interviews to local people, it was discovered that there is very little documentation carried out

regarding indigenous knowledge. Most of them are passed on orally to the next generation, which

relying on memory and existence of both storytellers and the listeners.

Photo 3.5 Sacred graves of Igboho/Oyo-Ile (left) and sacred art sculptures of Osun Grove

(right)

Outcome Report Global Field Exercise (GFE) Africa: Ibadan Unit ...

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