CSOs task FG on rerouting Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highways
Emmanuel Onuh/ Adi Comfort
A coalition of over 70 Civil Society Organisations has called on the Federal Government to immediately reroute the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway away from the Stubb’s Creek Forest Reserve in Akwa Ibom State to prevent an ecological disaster.
The coalition made the demand on Wednesday during a press conference on the ‘#SaveStubbsCreek Campaign’ in Abuja. The group warned that the current alignment threatens one of Nigeria’s most significant mangrove-freshwater ecosystems.
The Executive Director of Neighborhood Environment Watch Foundation, Dr. Kelechikwu Okezie, argued that the project failed standard Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA). He noted that while the highway can be realigned, the environmental damage to the reserve would be irreversible.
“We express deep concern over the proposed routing through the Stubb’s Creek Forest Reserve, a legally gazetted area. We are also alarmed by statements from the Akwa Ibom State Government suggesting it might pursue de-reservation of the creek to make way for this project,” Okezie said.
He noted that repurposing a forest reserve requires meaningful public participation and adherence to international environmental norms, which he claimed had been bypassed.
“Portions of the coastal highway have already been realigned in other locations, demonstrating that alternative routes are feasible when ecological and social considerations are taken seriously,” he added.
According to the coalition, the reserve is a biodiversity hotspot and a source of livelihood for indigenous communities. They warned that the project risks large-scale deforestation, disruption of hydrological systems, and a loss of coastal resilience.
In his remarks, the Director of Policy Alert and Coordinator of the #SaveStubbsCreek Campaign, Dr. Tijah Bolton-Akpan, lamented that the forest’s rare species are already under threat from illegal logging.
He said, “Development is not just about brick and mortar. The ecological and social dimensions are intrinsic to true progress. We are particular about the Akwa Ibom State Government because they have made public statements to allow this highway to pass through the forest. This decision will mortgage the future of the Niger Delta.”
Also speaking, the Executive Director of the Women Inspiration Development Centre, Mrs. Busayo Obisakin, urged the government to consider the global climate crisis before destroying carbon sinks.
“We should not be penny-wise and pound-foolish. When we develop without considering future generations, our development amounts to degradation,” she said.
The coalition urged the Federal Ministry of Works to disclose alternative alignments and called on the Ministry of Environment to mandate a cumulative Environment and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA).
They further tasked the Akwa Ibom State Government to affirm the protected status of the reserve and refuse any land allocation or right-of-way approvals that would permit construction within the sensitive zone.
