This investigation also puts the spotlight on the plantation giant’s disconcerting role as a rubber supplier to European tire manufacturers, including French-based Michelin raising critical concerns about its existing associations with deforestation and human rights violations in West Africa.

Okumu, Nigeria – Okumu Oil Palm Company, a subsidiary under the umbrella of the Socfin Group, possesses an extensive 7,335-hectare rubber plantation and a sprawling 19,062-hectare palm plantation, all nestled within the Ovia South-West local government area of Edo State.

The company’s presence in the Okumu community has become a contentious issue, notably for the indigenous people, including children who have endured displacement due to the company’s activities.

In 2021, the Socfin Group reported a remarkable profit of 80.4 million euros, its highest figure since at least 2014 due to increasing prices for palm oil and rubber. Yet, paradoxically, the Okumu community and other host communities throughout West Africa remain a stark contrast to the image of prosperity associated with Socfin’s substantial export earnings.

Human Rights Abuses

In a deeply distressing account of events, residents of Okumu have leveled accusations against the company for forcibly dismantling three villages within the district, namely—Lemon, Agbeda, and Oweike.

This action resulted in the displacement of hundreds of indigenous inhabitants and the grim aftermath of community farmland destruction, loss of life, and the disruption of children’s education.

For many of these people, their roots run deep within these villages, with no kin beyond the boundaries of their home. The repercussions of the company’s actions continue to haunt the affected communities, even decades after the devastation was wrought.

Today, Lemon, once a thriving community, has been reduced to a mere memory, while the residents of Oweike and Agbeda have been compelled to relocate to nearby communities, seeking refuge and new beginnings.

Upon closer examination, our investigation unveiled a disconcerting narrative: following the eviction of these three communities, the company proceeded to expand its palm and rubber plantations, acquiring a staggering 1,969 hectares of oil palm and 1,811 hectares of rubber in the process.

According to the company’s own website, these expansions represent only a fraction of their broader growth trajectory, with an astounding total of 33,112 hectares now under their purview.

The story of Austin Lemon, a mere 15 years old at the time Socfin’s presence descended upon his community, serves as a heart-wrenching testament to the trauma endured by these communities. As he watched the Luxembourger company, accompanied by security personnel, lay waste to his ancestral home, he also witnessed the pleas of his parents and fellow Lemon village residents in Okomu.

They implored the company to allow them to remain, as they had no alternative haven. Regrettably, their appeals fell on deaf ears, as Socfin’s relentless pursuit of rubber and palm resources took precedence.

His father, the founder of Lemon Village in 1969 and the namesake of the community, followed the age-old Nigerian customary law, which dictates that the first person to settle on a virgin land gains rightful ownership.

Lemon, who is now 33, recalls the profound “shock” that gripped his father, the respected leader of Lemon village within the Okumu community, upon learning that Socfin had acquired their ancestral home. In a desperate bid to secure some semblance of justice for his fellow villagers in the face of impending displacement, Lemon’s father implored the company to provide compensation for their relocation but that did not happen.

He ruefully reflects, “The Company planted their plantation without heeding to their pleas.” The consequences were catastrophic – every single house in Lemon village met its demise, and the once-thriving areas reserved for the cultivation of plantain, cassava, cocoa, and cocoyam were reduced to ruins.

Lemon’s personal account of these events is a poignant reminder of the human cost inflicted by the company’s actions. He reveals, “For a whole year, I couldn’t attend school because we were displaced and struggling to make ends meet.”

“It was the company’s actions that ultimately led to the death of my father, who had high blood pressure. He perished because the farms he once relied upon to feed his 32 children were also obliterated,” he revealed.

In a surprising turn of events, the company denied the findings presented to them.

According to Socfin’s communications team, they acquired their plantation following the de-reservation of a portion of Okomu Forest Reserve by Nigeria’s federal government, in compliance with the Edo Forestry Commission Law (1968) and its subsequent amendments, among other relevant legislation.

Nevertheless, Ajele Sunday, a spokesperson for the Okumu community, contradicts the company’s account. He asserts that the community “never received any compensation” when Socfin claimed to have procured the land from the government.

Multiple sources within the Okomu village have raised concerns, contending that the company conducted negotiations with the government without seeking or taking into consideration the community’s perspective.

This apparent lack of consultation with the community “directly contradicts the principles outlined in the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, particularly the concept of Free Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC),” Ajele argued.

This breach raises critical concerns about the treatment of indigenous communities and their rights in the context of corporate activities, shedding light on the urgency of adhering to these vital principles.

According to FPIC, Indigenous Peoples possess the right to grant or withhold consent for projects that stand to impact them or their territories.

A Tragic Fight for Freedom in Okomu Village

In 2022, Socfin (Okumu Oil Palm Company) took a contentious step by excavating a large trench around its plantation, effectively barricading the community, leaving residents stranded with no access to the outside world. During the rainy season, the runoff from this trench, laden with fertilizers, contaminated the Okomu River, the sole source of drinking water, and proved fatal to fish in the water. Frustrated by this environmental degradation, the residents organized a peaceful protest at the company’s entrance, demanding the closure of the trench.

The protests had spanned two days, with the first day devoted to demonstrations within the community. On the second day, the residents decided to take their grievances to the company’s gate. En route, they were intercepted by security officers determined to quell the protest.

Among the protesters, Iyabo Batu, aged 56, found herself at the forefront. On May 3, 2022, while demonstrating against the company’s closure of the sole road leading to her village, Marhiaoba, she was struck by a bullet in the knee, believed to have been fired by a Socfin security personnel.

“It was very difficult for my grandchildren to go to school because the white man blocked the road,” Iyabo Batu explained, referring to the Socfin manager. She went on to describe how the road closure, a consequence of the trench excavated by the company, led to children in the village discontinuing their schooling. This was the sole route in and out of the community, now obstructed by the company’s actions.

The peaceful protest turned tragic when security personnel attached to the company targeted Iyabo Batu, shooting her in the knee. She was swiftly transported to a clinic before being transferred to the general hospital of Igbuobazua headquarters. Her hospitalization extended beyond a month following the surgery for her gunshot wound, but she expressed her deep sadness at the fact that the company had neither covered her medical expenses nor offered their sympathy.

The company denied any involvement in the incident, insisting that no employee had shot Mrs. Batu. However, community spokesperson Sunday, among others, claimed that the company was attempting to distance itself from the actions.

Iyabo Batu’s X-ray results unveiled multiple patella fractures, and she credited Environmental Rights Actions (ERA) for her survival. Rita Ukwa of ERA disclosed that they supported Batu, including arranging a city apartment for her for a year after her hospital discharge, as evidenced by her hospital discharge receipt, indicating a payment of 226,940 naira[$296] to the Benin Teaching Hospital.

The company, in responding to findings of this investigation, asserted that they were unable to comment on the allegations as no “formal complaint had been filed by the alleged complainant, either to the company or the Nigerian Police Force.” They also clarified that their security personnel “were not permitted to carry weapons, as per government regulations.”

However, multiple witnesses, both within and outside the company, contended that a company security officer was indeed responsible for the shooting of 59-year-old Iyabo Batu. A non-Okomu resident working for the company identified the officer in question as a government anti-terrorism officer. The source chose to remain anonymous out of fear, considering the potential repercussions from either the company or the police officers who delayed recording the community’s statement when Mrs. Batu was rushed to the police station.

Our investigations showed that the security apparatus for Okumu Oil Palm Company comprises police, private security, and military officers, even though they are compensated by the federal government. These officers are also subject to the directives of the company, raising questions about the dynamics of power and accountability in this complex relationship.

 A spokesperson for Edo State Chris Osa Nehikhare said, “the government will also monitor what is happening in Okomu to ensure no one is exploited and to make life better for the community,”

Plantation Socfinaf Ghana and Deforestation

Meanwhile in Ghana, the operations of Plantation Socfinaf Ghana (PSG), a subsidiary of the Socfin Group which operates rubber and oil palm plantations in Manso and Daboase in the Western Region has led to the destruction of vital rainforests.

In 2017 and 2018, PSG contracted Proforest and HS+E respectively to conduct environmental assessments at its Subri site in Daboase ahead of the construction of a palm processing mill in 2019.

Findings from this assessment showed that any large-scale operations at the Subri site would result in the “loss of biodiversity, land degradation, increase in ambient noise levels, aerial emissions and the destruction of unique endangered ecosystems and species within the catchment areas.”

Notably, the Proforest assessment emphasized the substantial environmental value of the PSG Subri site. It was found to host a substantial “carbon stock of 981,080.74 metric tons” and served as a crucial “habitat for a vulnerable population of species” in need of conservation measures. Despite these findings, PSG proceeded with the construction of the palm processing mill in in 2020 costing US$20 million.

PSG also admitted that between 2012 and 2016, over 1 089 ha of natural forests were cleared to make way for its plantations failing to heed to concerns by environmental groups.

Despite mounting concerns and inquiries into PSG’s actions, the company has remained conspicuously silent, failing to respond to our requests for information regarding their mitigation plans and the repercussions of their operations on the communities around Daboase and the environment at large.

Data from Global Forest Watch paints a distressing picture of the situation. Between 2001 and 2022, Ghana’s Western Region witnessed the loss of a staggering 536,000 hectares of tree cover. This represents a 23% decline in tree cover since the turn of the millennium, accompanied by a grim emission of 297 million metric tons of CO₂ equivalent. It’s worth noting that this region, the wettest in Ghana, plays host to PSG’s extensive plantations.

The ramifications of this ecological decline extend beyond the boundaries of forests and into the lives of the local communities. Farmers like Godwin Ofori, a 35-year-old resident of Daboase in close proximity to PSG’s plantation, have borne the brunt of these changes.

Mr. Ofori expressed his frustration with the evolving rainfall patterns, stating, “One of the biggest challenges over the last decade has been unpredictable rainfall patterns. We cannot predict the rainfall pattern nowadays, and I believe that this is partly a destruction of our forests.”

Recent study by researchers at University of Leeds has shown that African tropical forests remain critical to the fight against the climate emergency, absorbing three times more carbon each year than the UK emitted in 2019.

The direct link between the decline in critical rainforests and these erratic weather patterns underlines the adverse impact on the livelihoods and food security of those living in the vicinity.

Startling findings from Global Witness showcase the unsettling consequence of industrial rubber plantations across the expanse of West and Central Africa, witnessing the loss of nearly 52,000 hectares of ecologically rainforest since the turn of the century—equivalent to an expanse 16 times the size of Brussels.

EU, Deforestation and Rubber companies

In June 2023, the EU introduced regulations on deforested products to address the challenge of rubber and oil plantation-driven deforestation. The EU remains the biggest export destination for palm oil and rubber cultivation from West Africa. Data from the Observatory of Economic Complexity shows that the EU imported over $500 million worth of natural rubber from West Africa in 2020 alone making natural rubber the EU’s most significant import from West Africa in terms of rainforest destruction.

The effect has been the loss of critical rainforests, with a damning impact on local communities, biodiversity, and the environment. This new law has the potential to put a check on Socfin’s operations across West Africa.

Colin Robertson, a Senior Forests Investigator at Global Witness lauded EU efforts describing it as a “very promising step towards reducing European consumers’ impact on the world’s forests.”

He however cautioned that “the inclusion of rubber should mean that European tire manufacturers will have to check that the rubber plantations they buy from are sticking firmly to zero deforestation pledges.”

Based on detailed export data examined, our investigation unearthed a direct link between Société des Matières Premières Tropicales PTE and the procurement of natural rubber from Okomu Oil Palm Company over the last two years.

Société des Matières Premières Tropicales PTE functions as the sole consolidated purchaser of natural rubber for tire manufacturing giant, the Michelin Group. This revelation gives rise to profound ethical concerns, casting a shadow on the European tire manufacturing industry’s dedication to fostering sustainability.

In response to our investigation, the Michelin Group acknowledged our findings and affirmed their awareness of “historical grievances expressed by local communities” against Okomu Oil Palm Company, insisting that they have closely monitored the situation since 2015.

“In collaboration with a civil society organization, we urged Socfin to enhance its sustainable development performance, which eventually led to Socfin’s adoption of “zero deforestation” and “non-exploitation” commitments,” Michelin wrote in their response.

However, our findings expose a crucial discrepancy: Socfin’s interpretation of “zero deforestation” does not align with the industry-recognized standard known as the High Carbon Stock Approach (HCSA). Neither Socfin nor its subsidiaries across West Africa are members of the HCSA. This incongruity highlights the urgent need for greater clarity and alignment within the industry.

Greenpeace has sounded a resounding alarm, cautioning that Socfin’s steadfast resistance to adopting the industry’s zero-deforestation standard poses a significant and looming threat to the forests of West Africa, where the company’s operations are concentrated.

The future of these critical ecosystems remains at a crossroads, demanding enhanced vigilance and rigorous commitment to sustainable practices.

——

Reporting by Gideon Sarpong, Elfredah Kevin-Alerechi and Audrey Travère. Writing and Editing by Gideon Sarpong.

This report is supported by JournalismFund Europe.

The post Socfin exploitation of rubber & palm oil linked to deforestation & human rights abuses in Ghana & Nigeria appeared first on iWatch Africa.

DIBOMBARI, Cameroon — “We are going through hell,” the haunting words of Marie Noel resonate with a mix of despair and fortitude. Marie, an activist in her 50s hailing from the village of Souza near Dibombari Socapalm Plantation, paints a somber portrait of her community’s plight. Amidst the cruel grip of hardship, they’ve been driven to the brink, forced to scavenge “Socapalm fruits and nuts” in a desperate bid to quell their gnawing hunger.

In 2006, Société Camerounaise de Palmeraies (Socapalm), a subsidiary of plantation giant, Socfin, embarked on an ambitious endeavor – the cultivation of palm plantations within Dibombari’s lush rainforest expanse in Cameroon. Yet, beneath the veneer of progress lies a tapestry of troubling accusations. Allegations of forcible land displacement, pollution of vital water sources, the decimation of delicate ecosystems, and the sacrilegious intrusion into ancestral lands cast a dark shadow over the company’s operations.

A three-month investigation conducted by Gideon Sarpong and Robert Abunaw puts the spotlight on these unsettling truths. At the core of this narrative looms a protracted legal clash waged in French courts – Sherpa et al. vs Socfin. This ten-year legal drama, ostensibly conceived to quell the quagmire of land conflicts, ecological turmoil, and the cries of the aggrieved, paradoxically seems to amplify the existing travails of these marginalized communities. Thousands, bereft of their means of livelihood, have been forced into the murky realm of petty criminality within the very bowels of Socapalm’s sprawling plantations – a bitter struggle for survival in the face of adversity.

Marie Noel placed the blame squarely on the government of Cameroon and Socfin, accusing the state of leasing all their precious farmlands to the multinational plantation company, and its local subsidiaries.

In her words, this decision has left the neighboring villagers with “nothing, as all their lands have been locked up in a 60-year lease to Socapalm.”

Despite all the controversies, the Socapalm plantation site situated in Dibombari secured a Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) certification in 2022. This certification is widely considered a mark of sustainable and environmentally conscious production, indicating that the site adheres to the lowest possible environmental impact standards.

However, a review of a July 2023 EarthWorm Foundation (EF) report, commissioned by none other than Socfin, casts a long shadow over the company concerning its Dibombari operations. The report confirmed accusations of severe improprieties, including the denial of livelihoods and land displacements, sexual harassment of local communities, water pollution resulting in a lack of access to clean drinking water, and the encroachment of sacred sites by the company’s sprawling plantations.

These findings, which are consistent with our own reporting, raise significant concerns about the RSPO certification granted to Socapalm’s Dibombari site. With documented instances of several cases of abuse, many are left wondering how the company managed to obtain its RSPO certification despite seemingly falling short of meeting crucial international regulations.

Mr. Emmanuel Elong, the president of SYNAPARCAM, a Cameroonian association defending the indigenous rights of local communities, expressed deep bewilderment over the continued granting of RSPO certifications to Socapalm.

“In the face of overwhelming evidence of misconduct and questionable practices, there are mounting questions about the legitimacy and effectiveness of the RSPO certification process,” he argued.

In response to this investigation, RSPO contented that “Socapalm Dibombari’s operating unit underwent an audit by the independent third-party certification body, BSI Services Malaysia Sdn. Bhd, who granted certification.”

RSPO further explained that it has “reviewed the EF report against the audit conducted by BSI and will advise BSI to review and verify the findings of the EF investigation. At their discretion, BSI will further investigate/verify those reports/issues/allegations via an additional audit or during its annual surveillance audit.”

The implications of these findings shed light on the ongoing challenges faced by the affected communities, raising urgent questions about the responsibility of both corporate entities and the government to protect the rights and well-being of their citizens.

Laura Bourgeois, Advocacy and Litigation officer for Sherpa, an international NGO dedicated to advocacy and litigation, notes: “The recurring problems we hear from community leaders on the frontline is that community members, stakeholders, are not included in the process and that the certification initiatives make the problems even worse.”

A Decade of Legal Strife and Its Unfolding Impact

Socfin in August 2023 released an action plan to address the findings of Earthworm’s report.

However, considering the company’s track record in Cameroon, skepticism arises among many regarding their commitment to follow through on these claims.

A representative for Socapalm declined to comment on this investigation, pointing to information available on Socfin’s official website.

In 2013, Sherpa initiated mediation with Bolloré, the majority owner of Socfin, to find resolutions to the persistent issues plaguing the plantations and their surroundings. This dialogue culminated in an action plan, where Bolloré pledged to leverage their influence to tackle these problems.

Yet, despite the agreed-upon plan, Bolloré failed to fulfill its commitments, prompting Sherpa and other organizations to initiate legal proceedings against the French multinational. A decade-long courtroom saga ensued, adding a further layer of complexity to the challenges endured by communities ensnared in Socapalm’s operational embrace.

“The non-implementation of the action plan agreed upon in 2013 confirms it is an absolute necessity, when possible, to have mandatory legislation in the field of business and human rights,” asserts Laura Bourgeois. She adds: “Otherwise, soft mechanisms mean that communities remain dependent upon the goodwill of companies. When mandatory legislation does not seem like an option, it seems appropriate to consider legal avenues to harden soft law.”

This legal battle in the French courts to compel the execution of the action plan, and to ensure the delivery of promised remedies, has aggravated the already dire challenges faced by some communities within the operational sphere of Socapalm.

In Kilombo, a village that is situated at the heart of Socapalm Kienke plantation in Cameroon, Yengue Jean’s frustration with the company is palpable. She characterized the company as “irresponsible” and went on to reveal that a borehole, ostensibly installed to benefit the village, was “primarily utilized to irrigate the adjacent Socapalm nursery.”

Jean lamented, “The residents are now compelled to depend on a nearby stream tainted with pollutants,” while sorrowfully noting, “Our once thriving forests have vanished, leaving us without the vital resources to sustain our traditional hunting practices.”

Deforestation and the new European Union (EU) Law

Startling findings from Global Witness showcase the unsettling consequence of industrial palm and rubber plantations across the expanse of West and Central Africa, witnessing the loss of nearly 52,000 hectares of ecologically rainforest since the turn of the century—equivalent to an expanse 16 times the size of Brussels.

A 2021 study led by Cameroonian researcher Professor Tchindjang Mesmin also revealed that palm oil cultivation in the dense forest regions of Cameroon has emerged as the principal catalyst behind deforestation since the year 1990.

In a sharp critique, Mr. Elong blamed the government of Cameroon for its perceived failure to tackle crucial issues, alleging that the administration displays “worrisome indications of corruption,”, especially in the enforcement of retrocession agreements between Socfin and the State.

Cameroon’s Minister of Environment and Protection of Nature, Pierre Hélé did not respond to our requests for comment.

In June 2023, the EU introduced regulations on deforested products to address the challenge of rubber and oil plantation-driven deforestation,

The EU remains the biggest export destination for palm oil and rubber cultivation from West Africa. Data from the Observatory of Economic Complexity shows that the EU imported over $500 million worth of natural rubber from West Africa in 2020 making natural rubber the EU’s most significant import from West Africa in terms of rainforest destruction.

The effect has been the loss of critical rainforests, with a damning impact on local communities, biodiversity, and the environment.

Dr. Addo Koranteng, Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of Research Innovation and Development in Ghana lauded the EU’s legislative action against deforestation.

Nonetheless, his commendation is accompanied by a stark warning: “The expansion of rubber plantations must be halted as these rubber-producing trees compete with other forest trees for the already depleted forest land.”

Dr. Koranteng’s concerns are underscored by an inconvenient truth: “As world market prices surge and global demand exacerbate, the extent of deforestation from these commodities will keep on increasing,” he explained.

Recent research compounds the urgency of the situation. Estimates project a need for an astounding 4.3 to 8.5 million hectares of new plantations to meet the mounting demand for natural rubber by the year 2024. Experts are ringing alarm bells, cautioning that this trajectory, if left unchecked, will unleash a cataclysmic toll on precious forests around the world.

So far, our investigation has revealed a notable absence: Neither Socfin nor its Cameroon-based subsidiaries currently have made any commitment to the High Carbon Stock Approach (HCSA), the de-facto standard for zero deforestation in the sector.

Greenpeace has sounded a dire warning, asserting that Socfin’s steadfast refusal to adopt a zero-deforestation policy poses an ominous and substantial threat to the forests of Cameroon, within which the company operates.

Socfin did not respond to email inquiries seeking comment.

Way Forward

A decade-long saga of legal battles in French courts has so far yielded little solace for the numerous villagers residing in proximity to Socapalm plantations.

For these villagers whose ancestral lands have been lost to the expansive reach of Socapalm’s plantations, the passage of time has failed to bring about the restitution they so desperately seek.

“The plight we face is beyond words – a dire and miserable reality,” said villagers from Bikondo and Lendi.

There is however a glimmer of hope as legal practitioner, Agboranyor Jeniffer, with a wealth of expertise in Cameroon’s Common Law and Administrative Court, believes there might be a viable solution on the horizon.

Peering into the intricacies of Prime Ministerial Decree No. 2022/5074PM, she points out a potential avenue: the possibility of initiating legal action against the Government of Cameroon. She cites Section 2(3) of Law No. 2006/022, enacted on December 29, 2006, which lays down the framework for the organization and operation of administrative courts in Cameroon.

“Under this legal framework, the court’s jurisdiction extends to pivotal matters including, but not limited to; claims for compensation due to losses caused by administrative actions and disputes centered around state-owned land,” she explained.

Jeniffer’s analysis offers a flicker of optimism for those who have long grappled with the repercussions of Socapalm’s operations.

As the legal landscape continues to evolve, these insights may hold the potential to redress grievances, foster justice, and pave the way for meaningful change in the lives of the affected communities.

Reporting by Gideon Sarpong and Robert Abunaw. Writing and editing by Gideon Sarpong.

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