Chad Cameroon Oil Pipeline Case Study

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The World Bank’s involvement in the Chad-Cameroon Oil Pipeline project was originally intended to make sure that Chad’s oil money was being returned to the civilians and ensure that the pipeline was being constructed in an ecologically friendly way (Horta, Nguiffo, & Djiraibe, n.d.). In 2000, the World Bank stated that the project’s success "will be measured by poverty reduction rather than by barrels of oil produced or millions of dollars received by Chad for oil exports,” (Horta, Nguiffo, & Djiraibe, n.d.). Contrarily to what the public was assured, the civilians have not been helped by the pipeline but have in fact been hurt. The already astonishingly low life expectancy of individuals in Chad has dropped an average of 1.1 years within the …show more content…

It was the World Bank’s responsibility to monitor the project and ensure that the people of Chad were being helped by the pipeline. They should have been paying closer attention to the different aspects of the project, for example where the pipeline was laid. By putting the pipeline right through Chad’s most fertile land, the native people were being set up for failure. Farms were destroyed, and trees such as avocado and mango trees that natives relied on were torn down. The people received money to purchase saplings in return, but this did not change the fact that most fruit-bearing trees take years and years to reach adulthood and actually begin providing fruit. The World Bank who promised to oversee the project and protect the people failed greatly. People that were displaced from their homes received poorly built shacks in return for their livelihood. While the pipeline does make money, it is not being given back to the people who essentially paid for it with their homes and food supply.

Also, the World Bank was frighteningly suspicious in their loans for the project. Both Chad and Cameroon are part of the IDA, which stands for the International Development Association. IDA credits and grants are made for the world’s most poor countries, but for the pipeline, the World Bank switched between IDA loans and IBRD loans, which are made for countries with a reasonable income. By switching the types of loans, the World Bank was able to shirk off questions regarding why they would be using the IDA’s funds to operate an oil project (Horta, Nguiffo, & Djiraibe,

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