In the heart of Nigeria’s vast Niger Delta, a persistent oil crisis unfolds, rooted not in technical failings but in the complex interplay of social, political, and economic forces shaping the region’s informal oil economy. This crisis, marked by the contentious existence of illegal artisanal oil refineries (IAORs), reflects deeply entrenched patterns of marginalization, criminalization, and contested resource control, with long-standing implications for the communities inhabiting this oil-rich ecosystem. Recent qualitative research offers new insights into this phenomenon, illuminating the nuanced dynamics of local oil refining and the epistemic injustices faced by the host communities and actors involved.
The research employs an exploratory design tailored to grapple with the multifaceted realities of artisanal oil refining in the Niger Delta’s riverine communities. This approach situates the local oil crisis within a broader socio-political framework, foregrounding notions of hermeneutical and testimonial injustice—forms of knowledge marginalization and voice silencing that have historically oppressed the region’s informal oil economy actors and their communities. By engaging deeply with local stakeholders, the study breaks from conventional criminological and economic analyses, offering a humanistic and epistemic lens that centers on the lived experiences of those directly affected.
Fieldwork was conducted extensively over six months in two key local government areas: Warri Southwest in Delta State and Nembe in Bayelsa State. These geographic loci are emblematic of the widespread informal oil refining activities found throughout the Niger Delta, presenting robust networks of artisanal operators embedded in complex social fabrics. The study employed purposive sampling, identifying gatekeepers who enabled access to IAOR hubs—tight-knit communities where artisanal operators, site owners, and their support networks interact intensely. Snowball sampling further expanded participation to 42 individuals possessing insider knowledge about IAOR operations and related socio-political dynamics.
Participants included a diverse cross-section of key stakeholders, ranging from clandestine illegal refinery operators and owners to formal oil sector workers and members of security and vigilante groups stationed in or near IAOR sites. Notably, beneficiaries of government-led amnesty programs also featured among the participants, reflecting ongoing attempts at conflict resolution and socio-economic reintegration within these volatile spaces. This inclusive participant pool ensured a multi-voiced narrative, although statistical representativity was not the objective; instead, the research focused on depth, richness, and the epistemic validity of embodied knowledge systems.
Data collection pivoted primarily on in-depth, semi-structured interviews lasting approximately 45 to 60 minutes, complemented by sustained non-participant observation within IAOR locales. Such immersive ethnographic methodology allowed the researcher to navigate the delicate terrain between illicit economic activities and the state’s multiple security apparatuses, observing firsthand the interplay between artisanal operators and enforcement agents. Data was gathered predominantly in Nigerian Pidgin English and indigenous dialects, preserving the authenticity and nuanced expression of participant viewpoints.
All interviews were audio-recorded with explicit informed consent, followed by meticulous verbatim transcription and translation into standard British English. Concurrent field notes captured essential non-verbal and contextual cues, enriching the interpretative depth of the analytical process. Ethical rigor underpinned the research, with approvals secured from Nigeria’s Social Science Ethics Review Committee and the University of Ibadan’s Review Board, ensuring adherence to regional protocols for human subject research. Given the sensitivity associated with illegal oil refining, strict confidentiality and identity protection measures were scrupulously enforced.
The analytical framework harnessed thematic analysis, employing a structured six-step process beginning with deep immersion in the data, proceeding through coding to the elaboration and refinement of emergent themes. The qualitative data analysis software Atlas.ti facilitated systematic sorting, enabling the researcher to map complex thematic interrelations effectively. Central themes that arose included recruitment dynamics within IAOR networks, demographic and social profiles of involved actors, multifunctional roles played by community members, and the persistent criminalization of locally embedded knowledge systems surrounding artisanal oil refining.
Intriguingly, the data unveiled the framing mechanisms that underpin the state’s conceptualization of IAORs as criminal enterprises. This framing obscures the socio-economic realities and survival strategies that drive artisanal refining, perpetuating testimonial injustice by invalidating community knowledge and agency. Equally significant was the revelation of hermeneutical injustice, where local voices and epistemologies were systematically excluded from national narratives and policy discourses, rendering essential experiences of marginalization and state neglect invisible.
The study’s findings thus unpack the implications of criminalizing IAOR practices, demonstrating how such policies exacerbate existing social fissures and fuel cycles of resistance and marginalization. The research points to the necessity of rethinking resource control frameworks to incorporate epistemic justice, recognizing the legitimacy of local knowledge systems and addressing structural inequalities that sustain the informal oil economy. This reframing challenges orthodox approaches focused solely on enforcement and suppression, advocating instead for inclusive strategies that align formal policy with the lived realities of Niger Delta communities.
Beyond the socio-political dimensions, the study highlights intricate recruitment patterns within IAOR networks, elucidating how actors are drawn into artisanal refining through kinship ties, economic necessity, and community affiliations. These insights reveal the embeddedness of the informal oil economy in local social structures, complicating simplistic narratives that portray these actors merely as criminals. Demographic analysis further indicates heterogeneity among participants, refuting stereotypes and showing how age, occupation, and socio-economic status intersect in complex ways within artisanal oil refining communities.
Moreover, the research underscores the multifaceted roles community residents play—simultaneously victims, beneficiaries, enforcers, and negotiators—within the illicit oil value chain. Vigilante groups and joint task forces interact in ambiguous constellations with IAOR operators, blending collaboration and conflict in oscillating patterns shaped by shifting political and economic contexts. This dynamic challenges binary categorizations of legality and illegality, exposing a layered reality in which formal authority and informal governance coexist and contend.
The linguistic choices inherent in the study, particularly the use of Nigerian Pidgin and local dialects, spotlight the cultural specificity of knowledge transmission and the critical importance of preserving such discourses in qualitative research. These linguistic modalities carry epistemic weight, serving as vehicles for community identity, resistance, and solidarity. Their inclusion in data collection ensures fidelity to participant voices and mitigates the risk of interpretative erasure common in translational processes.
Importantly, the methodological rigor and ethical mindfulness that underscore this study contribute significantly to its credibility and impact. The researcher’s transparent engagement with gatekeepers and communities fosters trust and reciprocity, enabling access to otherwise inaccessible networks. This approach sets a precedent for future research in sensitive and politically charged contexts, advocating for ethical reflexivity and participatory engagement as pillars of responsible scholarship.
Ultimately, this research illuminates the urgent need for epistemic justice in the Niger Delta’s ongoing oil economy crisis. By reframing the conversation around IAORs away from solely criminal lenses toward inclusive understandings of local knowledge, agency, and resistance, policymakers and stakeholders can craft more effective, equitable strategies that embrace rather than erase the lived realities of the region’s communities. This paradigm shift holds potential not only for conflict resolution but also for sustainable resource governance in one of the world’s most complex informal economies.
The Niger Delta’s informal oil economy, long marginalized in mainstream discourse, emerges through this work as a rich tapestry of contested meanings, power struggles, and survival strategies. Acknowledging this complexity is essential for moving beyond punitive approaches and towards models of justice that respect and incorporate diverse epistemologies. In doing so, we begin to untangle the Gordian knot of oil, identity, and justice at the heart of Nigeria’s enduring oil crisis.
Subject of Research: Illegal artisanal oil refining in the Niger Delta and the epistemic injustices faced by involved communities and actors.
Article Title: The framing of the informal oil economy in Nigeria: toward epistemic justice of the illegal artisanal oil refineries in the Niger Delta.
Article References:
Ayodele, A.a. The framing of the informal oil economy in Nigeria: toward epistemic justice of the illegal artisanal oil refineries in the Niger Delta.
Humanit Soc Sci Commun 12, 1382 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-025-05718-7
Image Credits: AI Generated
