The Niger Delta’s Slow Death: How Nigeria’s Oil Wealth Created an Environmental Refugee Crisis at Home

For decades, the Niger Delta has powered Nigeria’s economy, generating the oil wealth that has financed national development. Yet, beneath that prosperity lies a region burdened by polluted rivers, degraded farmlands and disappearing livelihoods. At the 2026 Correspondents’ Week of the Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Rivers State Council, environmental advocates warned that unless urgent remediation is undertaken, the country’s oil-rich heartland risks leaving future generations with a legacy of environmental devastation rather than prosperity. Blessing Ibunge reports

Raccontata dathisdaylive.com