Journalists, editors and media practitioners have called for stronger media scrutiny and sustained investigative reporting to expose methane emissions, hold polluters and regulators accountable, and strengthen environmental governance in Nigeria.
The call was made at a Media, Accountability and Methane Emissions Enforcement Webinar convened by Policy Alert in collaboration with BudgIT Foundation, where participants reaffirmed the critical role of the media in driving accountability for methane emissions and promoting effective enforcement of environmental regulations.
The webinar opened with remarks by Edidiong Dickson and Enebi Opaoluwa, representing the Executive Director and Global Director of Policy Alert and BudgIT Foundation respectively.
In their remarks, the speakers drew attention to the heavy environmental, health and economic burden borne by host communities as a result of methane emissions, particularly emissions associated with oil and gas activities.
They noted that the situation in many affected communities had been compounded by weak enforcement of existing environmental regulations and laws, stressing the need for greater institutional accountability and public scrutiny.
The engagement featured the screening of Flaring Lives, a documentary highlighting the realities of communities affected by gas flaring, followed by reflections from participants, a panel discussion on media, accountability and methane emissions enforcement, as well as an interactive session focused on practical opportunities for journalists to report on the issue.
Participants observed that methane emissions, particularly those arising from routine gas flaring, remain a major environmental, public health and climate challenge.
They stressed that the scale and consequences of methane emissions require sustained, evidence-based journalism capable of bringing the issue to the attention of policymakers, regulators and the wider public.
According to participants, the media has a crucial responsibility to scrutinise regulatory compliance, investigate emissions and enforcement gaps, amplify the experiences of communities affected by oil and gas activities, and provide citizens with reliable information on the environmental and health consequences of methane pollution.
They also emphasised the importance of moving beyond episodic reporting to sustained investigations that track regulatory commitments, corporate compliance, enforcement actions and the impact of methane emissions on communities.
The participants therefore resolved to strengthen collaboration between journalists and civil society organisations in order to improve access to information, data and technical expertise required for effective reporting on methane emissions.
They further committed to deepening investigative journalism on methane emissions, leveraging data-driven reporting and human-centred storytelling to drive accountability, while building the capacity of media practitioners on climate change, environmental governance and extractive-sector issues.
The participants also agreed to promote informed public discourse that would encourage stronger enforcement of methane regulations and support Nigeria’s broader climate commitments.
They maintained that effective media engagement could help bridge the information gap surrounding methane emissions while placing greater pressure on relevant authorities and industry stakeholders to comply with environmental standards.
Blessing Ibunge
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