The civil society group Policy Alert has asked Nigeria's National Assembly to hold a joint hearing on the country's exposure to international investment treaty disputes, Premium Times reports.
Launching a report in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, on Wednesday, the group warned that long-term petroleum commitments and investor-state dispute settlement clauses could restrict future regulation and expose public finances to legal claims. Such clauses let foreign investors take governments to international arbitration over alleged breaches of their protections.
The group said Nigeria was courting offshore oil and gas investment without properly assessing long-term effects on revenue, environmental accountability and policy freedom, a concern for Niger Delta communities affected by decades of pollution. It cited two arbitration cases involving Shell-related entities under the Nigeria-Netherlands treaty, both discontinued, and asked lawmakers to review findings of a federal committee set up in 2024 to examine bilateral treaties.
Source: Premium Times
