Just when we thought the scramble for Africa was over, it seems like imperialism is still present in Africa. What is happening now? In 1958, the Dutch-British multinational oil company Shell invested its’ oil companies in Nigeria. What was intended to bring forth economic growth and job opportunities, instead brought forth corruption, environmental degradation, and political instability. Shell was given full authority to extract the rich oil reserves present in Nigeria so that both, the company and Nigeria could mutually benefit from each other. What has ended up happening for the past several decades was that Shell was exclusively exporting Nigerian oil to “fortify U.S and European oil companies like Shell and Chevron” (UhuruNews). This, evidently did not help Nigeria economically as although Nigeria is the “eighth largest oil exporter in the world, majority of its people still live in poverty” (UhuruNews). Imperialism is still in existence today, and due to exploitation by companies such as Shell, Nigeria is unstable in social, political, and environmental aspects. Revolutions and labour union protests have been ongoing for years. For instance, protest groups from the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta demand profit from their countries oil. Oil spills in the Niger Delta wiped out bio life and caused destruction of the environment. For Shell, Nigeria is their pot of gold. For Nigeria, Shell is a thief and exploiter. As R. Edward Freeman has mentioned in his Stakeholder Theory, corporations, managers, and leaders have to create values for goods and services, people, employees, and customers. Shell has proven to only concentrate on their corporation which therefore makes them a business in decline. Shell’s corporate ethics needs to be redefined as Nigerian citizens are not benefiting from their own oil reserves.
VIDEO:
In-depth documentary of Shell exploitation of Nigerian oil reserves:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htF5XElMyGI
Shell in Nigeria
Militant group MEND protesting to have control of their oil reserves.
The after-effects of the oil spill in Bodo, Nigeria. Photograph Author: Pius Utomi Ekpei/AFP/Getty
Bibliography:
http://uhurunews.com/story?resource_name=shell-more-oil-nigeria
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/apr/23/shell-nigeria-oil-spill-bigger
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