Martha Agbani

Last updated
Martha Agbani
Born
Khana, Nigeria
Alma mater Kenule Beeson Saro-Wiwa Polytechnic
Years active2003–
OrganizationLokiaka Community Development Center
Known for Environmental activism

Martha Agbani is a Nigerian environmental activist. [1] She is the founding director of the Lokiaka Community Development Center, which advocates for the rights of indigenous Ogoni women farmers. [2] [3]

Contents

Early life and education

Agbani was born in Khana, Nigeria. [2] Her mother was an activist who protested against the multinational oil company Shell in the 1990s. [4] As a teenager, she was a student in Bori City, [1] and eventually attended Kenule Beeson Saro-Wiwa Polytechnic. [2]

Career

After the execution of Ken Saro-Wiwa in 1995 and her mother's death in 2001, Agbani joined the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People in 2003. [2]

Following two oil spills in 2008 that damaged mangrove forests and fishing areas in Bodo, Nigeria, Shell had agreed to compensate the town approximately $83.5 million USD and replant mangroves. [5] Agbani began to grow mangroves to sell to Shell and, [6] in 2009, established the Lokiaka Community Development Center, a non-governmental organization that aims to support Ogoni women farmers to maintain the natural environment. [7] According to Nigerian online newspaper TheCable , the organization sells mangroves to oil companies at a rate of approximately ₦500 – ₦1,000 (US$0.33 – US$0.66) per seedling. [2]

References

  1. 1 2 Maclean, Ruth (2021-09-03). "The Nigerian Activist Trying to Sell Plants to the Oil Company That Destroyed Them". The New York Times . Retrieved 2024-02-16.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Chime, Vivian (2022-09-28). "SPOTLIGHT: Martha Agbani, the Ogoni activist empowering women through mangrove restoration". TheCable . Retrieved 2024-02-16.
  3. ↑ AriseNews (2024-09-04). "NGO Moves to Restore Five Million Mangroves in Niger Delta". Arise News. Retrieved 2024-09-05.
  4. ↑ "West African Climate Activists at the Forefront of the Movement for Climate Justice". The Climate Reality Project . 2023-07-18. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  5. ↑ Faul, Michelle (2015-01-07). "Shell, villagers agree to $83.5 million for huge oil spill". Associated Press . Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  6. ↑ Udegbunam, Oge (2022-08-02). "Facing oil pollution with little govt attention, Niger Delta residents begin replanting mangroves". The Premium Times . Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  7. ↑ Lijfering, Siri (2019-12-12). "Vice Versa: "A woman is not meant to stand in the spotlight"". Global Alliance for Green and Gender Action. Archived from the original on 2024-02-20. Retrieved 2024-02-20.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.