Bukola Afeni
History was made on Sunday as Princess Diana Eyo-Enoette brought a United Nations delegation to Warri Kingdom.
The United Nations mission as led by the country Resident Coordinator Matthias Schumale paid a visit to the Warri Kingdom.
As part of the visit, Olori Atuwatse III led the delegation to Ureju community, an impoverished oil-producing community
The visit was facilitated by Lady Diana Eyo-Enoette, the Chief Administrator to the Queen consort and Chief Operating Officer of the Royal Iwere Foundation.
The three-day official visit commenced with a round table discussion with CSO to discuss pertinent matters around Health, Agriculture, Environment, Education-and drug abuse.
The Commissioner for Humanitarian Services and Poverty Reduction, Hon Orode Udughan who represented the government, said for the first time in a long while, the people of the Warri kingdom are experiencing leadership that is proactive, pragmatic and people-oriented.
“Two years into the reign of Ogiame Atuwatse III CFR, he has been able to attract foreign interest in his kingdom.
Amid celebrations, the Ogiame was still at work as he engaged in a series of conversations with teams from the United Nations, UNESCO, WHO and Netherlands on how they could partner with the Iwerre kingdom to bring about further development of the kingdom.
“Beyond conversations, his royal majesty took practical steps and arranged for the team to visit the Ureje community. The Ureje community is one of the oil-producing communities in the Warri kingdom that has suffered.
One could see the hope written on their faces as they welcomed the royal family with dancing and rejoicing.
The “forgotten” people of the Ureje community came out to the shore in their colourful dresses laced with dignity as they displayed their cultural heritage.
The spokesman for the Ureje community, Mr Eniyan Tonwe, highlighted the major problems the community is encountering.
He pointed out that they have suffered the negative impact of oil exploration although they have not been given a fair share of the wealth generated.
“The benefits of oil exploration are taken away only to be left with the burden. The community lacks schools, medical facilities, electricity and good water. They drink the polluted water and many have suffered several health complications in which a lot of cases have resulted in death.
“Fishing which is their source of livelihood has been taken away and this worsens their plight. Tragically, many of their buildings have been submerged.
The major needs of the community according to Mr. Tonwe are sand filling and shoreline protection”, he said.
The head of the UN missions in Nigeria, Mr. Matthias Schmale pointed out that one of the roles of the UN is to try to influence governments both at the state and national level to provide such amenities as schools and healthcare services.
He also assured the community that in partnership with the royal household and other networks of experts within the private sector, multinationals and NGOs, the Ureje community can experience development.
He noted that the global world is moving away from oil and gas and is beginning to focus on the green economy.
Schmale therefore called on members of the community to begin to look at other opportunities such as agriculture and fishing.
Olori Atuwatse III who heads the Royal Iwerre Foundation, assured the people of the community that bringing the international delegates ( comprising of the UN, UNESCO, experts in shoreline protection and other core fields) is part of the deliberate efforts of the Ogiame and the royal family to ensure that the delegates witness the deprivation of the people so that strategic solutions could be realized.
She expressed confidence that through partnerships and collaborations such as these, the people of Ureje and the Warri kingdom would experience sustainable development.
She appreciated the members of the community for their warm reception and hospitality.
In response, the community spokesman Mr. Tonwe expressed confidence in the Ogiame’s ability to galvanize the development of the Warri kingdom
