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Landmark Delta Summit for River Deltas; A Beacon of Hope for Niger Delta

By Erabanabari Love Theophilus, Gender and Climate Expert


The DeltasUNite is an initiative conceived and led by Amb. Freeman Elohor Oluowo, the founder and Coordinator of the African Centre for Climate Actions and Rural Development (ACCARD). The DeltasUNite initiative birthed the first UNCCRD Delta Summit which was held at the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT), Thailand from 17-20 March 2025. 

The landmark delta summit is part of a global process and an initiative to demand for a  United Nations Convention for Conservation of River Deltas (UNCCRD), which was unveiled at the 2023 United Nations Climate Conference (COP28) which was held in Dubai . In March 2025, the Delta Summit gathered over 150 delegates who are key delta stakeholders from 24 countries at the Asian Institute of Science and Technology (AIT), Bangkok Thailand. It was an inclusive and high-level gathering of indigenous peoples and community representatives, academia, governments, local, national and international non-governmental organizations including United Nations bodies and experts in the relevant fields of discourse.

For centuries, global river deltas have experienced multifaceted challenges ranging from climate change-induced flooding, biodiversity and livelihood loss, food and water security problems worsened by increasing anthropogenic factors in global deltas. Salient river deltas like the Chao Phraya, Mekong, Nile, Indus, Niger and Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna suffers biodiversity loss and resource depletion due to menaces from climate change, pollution, urbanization, deforestation, and rising sea levels, which has led to loss of lands, malnutrition, food insecurity, communal crisis, forced migration, decline in human health and poverty.

Globally, the estimated population of river deltas denizens is over 500 million people which represents about 7% of the world population. River deltas are economic hubs, like the Mekong in Vietnam for example which supplies a substantial portion of the world's food, the Mekong delta alone supplies about 20% of the world's rice. River deltas support a broad range of food production, including agriculture and fisheries.

For centuries, global river deltas have experienced multifaceted challenges ranging from climate change-induced flooding, biodiversity and livelihood loss, food and water security problems worsened by increasing anthropogenic factors in global deltas. Salient river deltas like the Chao Phraya, Mekong, Nile, Indus, Niger and Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna suffers biodiversity loss and resource depletion due to menaces from climate change, pollution, urbanization, deforestation, and rising sea levels, which has led to loss of lands, malnutrition, food insecurity, communal crisis, forced migration, decline in human health and poverty.



The Niger Delta of Nigeria is home to over 31 million people which represents about 25 percent of Nigeria’s total population. 70 percent of the Niger Delta population are rural dwellers in mostly farming and fishing communities.  The Niger Delta is a natural resource hotspot with an abundant crude oil deposit. As an economic main stay of Nigeria through oil and gas sales, the Niger Delta region also contributes significantly to Nigeria’s agriculture particularly in the production of Palm oil, fish, and various crops. However, the current deplorable and distressing state of the Niger Delta environment and biodiversity loss largely due to pollution caused from the oil and gas sector has significantly affected the social economic status of the Niger Delta communities with an estimated 47% of the population living below the poverty line. In a 2022 report by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) revealed that the local communities in the Niger Delta are the poorest in the country (serap-nigeria.org). This has led to a massive movement and continuous migration trend from the Niger delta communities.

 


River deltas are fragile and essential ecosystems, the local communities depend on their rich biodiversity for livelihood and overall wellbeing. The critical state of the river deltas and the urgency to co-create solutions led to the In-gathering of the first of its kind UNCCRD Delta summit 2025 which delved extensively into the challenges, limitations, nature- based solutions, achievable concrete climate actions, policy outlines and recommendations, finance structures, and technological approaches to achieving sustainable governance structures for river deltas to thrive and prosper.

The Summit opened with keynote addresses from H.E. Senator Douye Diri, Executive Governor of Bayelsa State, Nigeria, and Dr. Bhichit Rattakul, President of the Thai Network for Disaster Resilience and former Governor of Bangkok. Senator Diri delivered a powerful message on the environmental devastation caused by oil and gas exploration in the Niger Delta. He emphasized that the Niger Delta people’s lives is at risk, with 40% of mangrove forests lost due to rising sea levels and pollution. He called for urgent global assistance to tackle the climate crisis and better ways to protect vulnerable communities, stressing that “Degradation of river deltas is no longer tolerable.” He also proposed the designation of a “Global Delta Day” to raise awareness and mobilize international action.

Dr. Rattakul, while highlighting critical issues faced in Mekong and Chao Phraya delta regions, he emphasized the need to strengthen delta resilience as crucial to securing the sustainable long-term livelihoods and food security, especially as climate change accelerates the impacts of climate hazards. He urged for deeper discussions on policy interventions, regional cooperation, and community engagement in delta conservation.

Amb. Freeman Elohor Oluowo, the Lead and Focal Person for the DeltasUNite and UNCCRD Initiative expressed the urgent need for collaborative action, stating, “The summit has been instrumental in demonstrating that diverse delta groups can work together to co-create solutions to common issues in global deltas


The Summit featured twelve plenary keynotes, four plenary panel discussions, forty technical presentations and nine breakout sessions. Discussions focused on a wide spectrum of issues and topics related to delta sustainability, including ecosystem restoration, biodiversity conservation, sustainable land-use planning, cultural heritage, economic resilience, infrastructure development, climate change challenges, governance gaps, strategies for resilience building and adaptation and use of technology, data and indigenous knowledge. Representatives from government, academia, private enterprises, international organizations, and community-based organizations actively engaged in the discussions, ensuring a multi-sectoral, multi-disciplinary, and bottom-up approach to addressing delta challenges, integrating perspectives from policymakers, researchers, and grassroots organizations


The summit has further strengthened the call for the establishment of a “Global Delta Day”, reinforcing the need for its yearly commemoration. The 2025 UNCCRD Delta Summit concluded, with a focus to translating the summit commitments into action. Key actors and stakeholders aligned with the need for an urgent intervention and collaboration to make UNCCRD operational. The event provided a critical roadmap for ensuring river deltas resilience, productivity, and sustainable governance for generations to come.







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