ABSTRACT
The chapter has examined the stakeholder engagement strategies of traditional leaders (Chiefs) who are demanding special benefits from Ghana’s oil and gas sector. The chapter qualitatively analyses how the Chiefs have collectively and individually engaged with the government and oil and gas companies to demand 10 per cent of proceeds from the oil find. Their action has largely conformed to the meaningful stakeholder engagement (MSE) proposition and represents a somewhat bottom-up approach to stakeholder engagement since the Chiefs are traditionally representatives of the local population. How meaningful in terms of clear outcomes and benefits accruing to the local population, however, remains contested since many Chiefs feel their actions have not met the intended purpose. The lack of a well-informed plan and specifically targeted demands appeared largely the cause of the poor outcome of the action of the local Chiefs. The local Chiefs also appeared divided, and some were accused of promoting personal or their communities’ interests against the collective interest of the Western Region as a whole. Local platforms and civil society efforts which promoted local actors’ engagements appeared very active in the early days of oil discovery and production but have become dormant in recent times. The chapter concludes that local Chiefs’ interests are varied, and engagements are largely unregulated. State coherent policies and structures to mediate the effective stakeholder engagement processes between local Chiefs, the state and oil companies are therefore recommended to ensure the meaningfulness of local stakeholder engagement.
