Managing the challenges of obtaining a social license to operate in the pre-mining phase: A focus on the oil sands communities in Ondo State, Nigeria

Abstract

The mining industry, as a result of how mining activities are carried out and their impacts on the environment, has learnt different approaches to analyzing and handling critical issues. This has also helped the industry understand that obtaining a formal license to operate from governments and meeting regulatory requirements is no longer enough. In order to reduce the risks of stakeholders’ complaints and operational delays, a social license to operate (SLO) needs to be obtained. Failure to obtain an SLO may lead to the inability to explore economically valuable mineral resources. This research aimed to carry out a study on some oil sands deposits communities in Nigeria to identify the challenges that will be faced by a mining company when it seeks to obtain an SLO to explore these resources, and to discuss how to manage these challenges in order to avoid repeating the mistakes made by the oil and gas industries in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. Based on results, it was concluded that the major challenges that a mining company will encounter are, first, the difficulty to communicate with the local communities, due to the high linguistic diversity and the poor formal education of the members of these communities, and second, the need to educate the locals about the negative socio-environmental impacts of pre-mining activities. Other important challenges are: proper identification of the actual stakeholders, since the communities are contiguous; gaining the local communities’ trust; mitigating the effects of pre-mining activities on socio-environmental and economic aspects of the community; overcoming the companies’ lack of information on the local communities and lack of understanding about the complexities involved in obtaining and maintaining an SLO. To deal with these challenges, the mining company should apply mitigation measures and compensations where necessary. A local liaison officer should be employed to communicate with the community. The mining company must be truthful in its dealings with the community and be able to earn their trust. In conclusion, a mining company must be ready to work, support and establish a long lasting relationship with the community to obtain a SLO.