About two weeks ago, Interface and Artelia embarked on a social screening survey, that was an addendum to a similar exercise carried out in Buliisa the previous year (see here for more details). This exercise was aimed at guiding TOTAL E&P on finalising the choice of location for linear facilities (such as pipeline network) and non-linear facilities (such as the Central Processing Facility), ascertain the issues that the Environment and Social Impact Assessment should address, and consequently allow the project to anticipate any potential disturbance before activity begins.
Some of the objectives of the study include providing a good understanding of the societal context where the project would take place while taking into consideration positive and negative impacts as well as potential mitigation measures. The team was also tasked with identifying key stakeholders, engaging them with a clear message and recording their feedback for further integration into the project design and process.
