World Bank delays resettlement project following forced evictions

By Hassan Haruna Ginsau

The World Bank together with the Lagos state government has failed to live up to the promise of resettling 9,000 people who were forcefully evicted from their homes in Badia east community of Lagos state.

According to Amnesty international, women, men and children of Badia east community have been homeless for a year after agents of the Lagos State Physical Planning and Development Agency (LASPPDA) and the Lagos State Environmental and Sanitation Task bulldozed and razed their homes with the promise that they would benefit from a World Bank funded project in Lagos.

Badia is one of the host communities for “slum upgrade” activities under the $200 million World Bank-funded Lagos Metropolitan Development and Governance Project (LMDGP).

Amnesty, in a press release accused the World Bank and Lagos state government of “failing miserably to live up to their promise to adequately compensate and resettle the victims.”

Oluwatosin Popoola, a researcher at Amnesty International said: “Many families have been separated, children unable to attend school and parents struggling to work.”

Amnesty said residents of Badia East were not genuinely consulted or given adequate notice before bulldozers and armed police entered the community on 23rd February 2013, with most of them having no time to salvage any belongings from their homes before the demolitions began.

However, following pressure from the community and human rights organizations, the Lagos state government, in collaboration with the World Bank, agreed to develop and implement a Resettlement Action Plan (RAP) for the Badia East residents.

Nevertheless, the World Bank has failed to publicly disclose the draft RAP to the residents of Badia East making it impossible for them to have a say on its contents. Also, the Lagos state government has recently reduced the already inadequate compensation package, said Popoola.