February 2005

US oil giant Exxon Mobil made a record $25.3 billion profit in 2004.
BBC

…the largest annual profit ever made by a public company, smashing Ford’s previous record.
The Scotsman

Analysts struggled to find superlatives to describe Exxon Mobil’s earnings.
Cincinnati Post

Dear Friends and Family,

In a time of recession, Exxon’s 2004 success story lifts faith in the U.S. economy and boosts the stock markets’ spirits. Americans will flock to buy stocks and share in the oil giant’s profits.

June 2004 marked the official inauguration of the Chad Cameroon Oil Pipeline. Spearheaded by Exxon Mobil, this $3.7 billion mega-project has from its inception been surrounded by controversy. Under the pretext that petrodollars were an effective tool for poverty reduction, the World Bank played a catalyzing role with its endorsement of the project. For 670 miles, from oil fields in Southern Chad to the Cameroonian coastal town of Kribi, the pipe traverses 242 villages. The populations living in the vicinity of the pipe had no choice but to surrender their fields and livelihoods, which for generations had sustained their families. Without consulting the affected people, the companies fixed the amount of compensation in cash, but made no provision to restore the people’s self-reliance.

Six months after its inauguration, the project’s stakeholders announced the so-called “social closure” of the construction phase. With this stage the compensation issues end, and communities are asked to sign a statement to waive rights to further claims. In response, Cameroon’s Joining Hands Against Hunger partner network, RELUFA, decided to travel along the pipeline, visit the communities living beside it, and document their experience.

In November 2004 a small team began with the southern 73 miles of the project and spent six days interviewing villagers who had witnessed its development, hosted the project’s crews, and been part of the lively atmosphere created by the construction of the pipe. They had made their land and houses available in the expectation that the pipe would leave their children with a better future. The visits of RELUFA’s team were unannounced, and the population responded spontaneously. The eagerness with which many told their stories was striking, as they had found an outlet to relieve their frustrations and disappointments.

In the headlines

This newsletter introduces a series of stories derived from these interviews. They are authentic; they speak mostly for themselves but will never get the headlines of international newspapers. Mr. Essamba, a retired engineer in telecommunications, looks back:

Poverty is not a divine law. It is created by man. The pipeline arrived unexpectedly. It happened as if [the plans for] the project had not matured. They have paid villagers compensation [for their losses], but I wish they had first come to prospect before they started the works: who will have how much, and what can [the person] do with the money he is going to receive? There was no time to discuss. Some people have become poorer than they were before. Someone who has never received 50,000 FCFA ($100) in a year, and is suddenly given 2 million FCFA ($4000)…becomes a lunatic. We have had people in this village, who have gone away to Kribi town and lived in hotels. A little later the money is finished and they have become poorer [than before]. And their children—people don’t talk about it, but their children are roaming the streets as criminals. The population should have been educated ahead about the utilization of the money they were going to receive. This is a project where matters are dealt with at the national levels from one country to another. As for the population at the individual level, I can be firm and say that for the villages [the project] has been a failure.

Mr. Essomba’s observation illustrates the adverse impact of the Chad Cameroon Oil Pipeline on the local population, even when companies followed the letter of Cameroonian law. In its essence the project appears to have been designed to make the rich richer. Whether in the long run the poor are worse off, seems not Exxon’s concern.

What is our stake in Exxon’s success? Are headlines about multi-billion profits good news for us? Do we dare listen to stories from the other side of the coin? Do ethical standards for us as Christians stop at the loopholes of national laws? Through the words of Jesus and the prophets, God consistently defends the cause of the poor, vulnerable, and oppressed. The Scriptures call us to follow in their footsteps.

One Great Hour of Sharing

RELUFA is a direct recipient of the One Great Hour of Sharing offering. Please remember the Cameroonian JHAH partner network when this offering is taken on or around Easter Sunday, and say a word of prayer for all of our JHAH partners.

Christi

That all may have Life and have it to the full
John 10:10

Relufa's Web site has more information and documents on oil industries in the Central African Region.

I also recommend an article I wrote with Edith Abilogo for Sojourner's Web magazine.

The 2005 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 317