The ECOWAS Court of Justice has declared that the Nigerian government's failure to enact laws and establish effective institutions to regulate oil companies and hold polluters accountable is a breach of the country's international human rights obligations. The judgment is based on a case filed by MacArthur grantee, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project. The Court found that Nigeria violated articles 21 and 24 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights by failing to protect the Niger Delta and its people from the operations of oil companies that have for many years devastated the region.
