Assessing the Impacts of Ghana’s Oil and Gas Industry on Ecosystem Services and Smallholder Livelihoods

This study combined multiple theoretical perspectives in an attempt to understand complex interlinkages that underlie the almost inevitable negative outcomes associated with natural resources exploitation in developing countries like Ghana. The project further sought to evaluate the possible decline in critical local ecosystems and its impacts on the livelihoods that are dependent on them, in ways that are perceptible and not so easily perceptible. Finally, the study sought to understand how any such decline in ecosystem services and livelihoods may result in negative social and cultural outcomes. The study employed primary and secondary data which were analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively to assess the magnitude of these adverse impacts. The study used Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographical Information System techniques to assess land use change in the areas of the oil and gas exploitation. Surveys and interviews were conducted for local farmers and fisher folks to understand how exploitation activities impact on their livelihoods. Data obtained from the study were quantitatively and qualitatively analyzed. The oil industry has without doubt contributed to the status of Ghana being one of the fastest growing economies in the world, and has provided employment opportunities for many around the country. However, for local livelihood dependents, the consequences of the oil industry seem to be very different. The results show that the oil industry has adversely affected livelihoods of both farmers and fisher folks, alike, without alternative livelihoods. About 23 km2 of agricultural land has been converted to urban purposes since 2001 in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis, with nearly half has occurring between 2009 and 2016. This is against a general increase in agricultural land area through the entire country. The oil industry-accelerated agricultural land losses have directly affected about 25% of the total surveyed farmers, deepening local poverty and food insecurity. Similarly, the livelihoods of fisher folks have generally declined due to primarily due to the implementation of exclusion zones that limit access of fishermen to fertile fishing grounds. The study also revealed that loss of livelihoods and the complex migration dynamics, accelerated by the oil industry, have led to deterioration the sociocultural wellbeing. The oil industry has driven an increase in cost of living and high levels of local unemployment, which has imposed on local communities, consequences such as increased rates of vices, school dropouts, and teenage pregnancies, as well as number of conflicts. For Ghana to reap maximum returns from the relatively new oil and gas industry, it is essential to take a cue from other countries that have had to grapple with severe environmental issues relating to oil and gas exploration in order to forestall potential conflicts.

本研究结合多种理论视角，旨在厘清发展中国家（如加纳）在自然资源开发过程中伴随的几乎不可避免的负面后果背后的复杂内在关联。本项目进一步旨在评估关键本地生态系统的潜在退化，及其对依赖这些生态系统的生计所造成的影响，涵盖易被感知与不易被感知的两类维度。最后，本研究旨在探究生态系统服务与生计的此类退化如何引发负面社会与文化后果。本研究采用一手数据与二手数据，通过定性与定量结合的分析方法，评估上述负面影响的严重程度。研究运用遥感（Remote Sensing，简称RS）与地理信息系统（Geographical Information System，简称GIS）技术，对油气资源开发区域的土地利用变化进行评估。研究针对当地农民与渔民开展了问卷调查与访谈，以了解开发活动对其生计的影响。研究所得数据均经过定量与定性分析。油气产业无疑推动加纳跻身全球增长最快的经济体之列，并为全国众多民众提供了就业岗位。但对于依赖本地生计的群体而言，油气产业的影响却截然不同。研究结果显示，油气产业已对农民与渔民的生计造成负面影响，且该群体尚无替代生计可选。自2001年以来，塞康第-塔科拉迪都会区已有约23平方公里的农业用地被转为城市建设用地，其中近一半的转化发生在2009年至2016年间。而同期全国农业用地总面积整体呈增长态势。油气产业加速的农业用地流失直接影响了约25%的受访农民，加剧了本地贫困与粮食不安全问题。同样，渔民的生计总体出现下滑，主要源于禁渔区的划定，该区域限制了渔民进入肥沃的捕捞海域。研究还发现，生计流失与油气产业加剧的复杂移民流动态势，已导致社会文化福祉恶化。油气产业推高了当地生活成本，推高了本地失业率，给当地社区带来了诸多负面影响，包括犯罪率攀升、辍学率上升、少女妊娠以及冲突数量增加等。为使加纳从这一相对新兴的油气产业中获取最大收益，有必要借鉴其他曾应对油气勘探相关严峻环境问题的国家的经验，以防范潜在冲突的发生。