Ford Foundation partners Foster Collaborative Solutions for Host Community Development Trusts Implementation in Nigeria

The Ford Foundation civil society partners, with support from the Ford Foundation, have convened a pivotal meeting organised by Spaces for Change to address the pressing issue of Host Community Development Trusts (HCDTs) implementation in Nigeria.

However, stakeholders voiced concerns about various aspects of the implementation process of the HCDTs, including flawed selection processes for Boards of Trustees, ambiguity surrounding the allocation of the 3% OpEx, power imbalances between corporations and host communities, lack of environmental accountability during divestment, and the absence of independent monitoring and evaluation mechanisms.

The participants commended the Ford Foundation for providing resources, supporting capacity building, and connecting local conversations to global discussions on natural resource governance.

Chichi Aniagolu-Okoye, Regional Director of Ford Foundation West Africa, assured grantees of the foundation’s commitment to natural resource and climate change initiatives through the provision of funding for the next five years for civil society actors in these focus areas.

Martin Abregu, Vice President of International Programs at the Ford Foundation, commended grantees for their key interventions aimed at improving democracy and the extractive sector.

The meeting concluded with a renewed commitment from all stakeholders to work collaboratively towards the effective implementation of HCDTs in Nigeria while the Ford Foundation emphasized its continued support for this process and its dedication to connecting local efforts with global conversations on resource governance and climate change.

The Ford Foundation