World Environment Day 2026: ANEEJ calls for better policies, loss and damage fund implementation

BENIN CITY, NIGERIA. JUNE 5, 2026 – As the world commemorates World Environment Day today, the Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice (ANEEJ) urges governments in Nigeria, and globally to adopt and enforce robust environmental policies that prevent individuals, corporations and financial institutions from wreaking havoc on communities and ecosystems, using the devastating experience of Ogoniland and Shell’s operations in the Niger Delta as a warning to the world, even as he called for improved disbursement of the loss and damage funds.

The Executive Director of ANEEJ, the Rev. David Ugolor in a statement noted that “the World Environment Day 2026, with its focus on restoring land and building resilience, is a reminder that environmental protection is central to poverty eradication, human rights and sustainable development. As an organisation, we know that without strong laws, effective enforcement and corporate accountability, communities will continue to bear the toxic costs of pollution, climate change and unsustainable resource extraction.”

He called on the United Nations, World Bank and the Nigerian authorities to step up efforts towards the implementation of the loss and damage commitment reached at COP 28 in the Niger Delta. “The Conference of the Parties (COP) and the Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement (CMA), at its twenty-eighth and fifth sessions in Dubai, operationalized the Fund for responding to Loss and Damage (FRLD) as an as entity entrusted with the operation of the Financial Mechanism of the Convention, which would also serve the Paris Agreement. This was firmed up in COP 30  and as of June last year, 27 countries had pledged about US$789 million to the fund, of which only $361 million had been paid.

“We are yet to feel the impact of this loss and damage fund in the Niger Delta. We need the UNFCCC, the World Bank, the Nigerian Government  and other stakeholders to frontally address this shortcoming in the implementation of the loss and damage commitments,” Ugolor stated.

He noted that “the Ogoni/Shell saga is a reminder of what a weak safeguard can cause. For decades, oil extraction in Ogoniland and the wider Niger Delta has resulted in extensive oil spills, gas flaring and chronic contamination of land, rivers and wetlands, destroying farmlands, fisheries and biodiversity that communities depend on for survival. Investigations and environmental assessments have shown that, years after global attention and promises of remediation, large areas of Ogoniland remain heavily polluted and many families still lack access to safe drinking water and productive soils,” 

The statement further notes that “there are existing gaps in environmental governance in Nigeria– including weak enforcement of existing laws and UNFCCC commitments, limited transparency, and insufficient regulatory capacity that have allowed pollution to persist. At the same time, responsible entities escape full liability for the damage they cause. Similar patterns can be seen in other African countries where extractive and industrial projects proceed without rigorous environmental and social safeguards, leaving communities vulnerable to displacement, contamination and loss of livelihoods.

“On this World Environment Day, we call on the Federal Government of Nigeria, African leaders, investor countries and multinational corporations to ensure that the mistakes of the Niger Delta are not repeated anywhere – by cleaning up polluted sites, enforcing strong safeguards and putting environmental justice at the centre of all development decisions.”

ANEEJ reaffirms its commitment to working with local communities, civil society organisations and international partners to hold polluters accountable, promote transparent and just management of natural resources, and advance policies that protect the environment for present and future generations.

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