T.I: Good evening. Welcome to another episode of the Good Citizen Show. Brought to you by CSR-in Action and proudly sponsored by Act Foundation. My name is Temitayo Albert Ikotun, but you can call me TI. Today I have with me, Thelma. Hello, Thelma.
Thelma: Hi, TI. How are you doing?
T.I: I’m fine, thank you. Today we’re going to be talking about something very special to us at CSR-in Action. It is called the SITEI conference, and the CARH Awards Africa 2022. It’s an amazing time. It’s a yearly program for us. The extractive industry, we all know, constituting the oil and gas, the mining, and the agricultural industry, have been a major driver of the economic growth, revenue, and development in Nigeria. However, the environment in which these activities are being carried out, they’ve been plagued with conflict, inequity, rather, environmental degradation, corruption, and so various restructuring efforts are being made consistently for the sector to enable sustainable practices. And this is where SITEI conference comes in SITEI is the Sustainability in the Extractive Industry Conference. I’ll repeat that. SITEI is the Sustainability in the Extractive Industry Conference. It’s an annual workshop established and organized by CSR in action to bring together key stakeholders in the industry, government, and regulatory bodies to discuss critical issues and exchange ideas to enable sustainable practices in this industry. The conference was birthed here in Lagos in conjunction with the Deputy High Commission of Canada in October 2012.
So, Thelma, we are diving straight into the event. You have been joined in the preparation of this event. Can you share with us the vision of this conference?
Thelma: Okay. For this year’s theme, we were planning something huge. And our vision this year is to identify effective strategies for accelerated and sustainable development within the extractive industries. Based on the problems that have been found, we are trying to look at workable solutions, and that’s what we’re going to be doing this year.
Right. That’s good. Obed, have you heard about the SITEI conference?
Obed: Yes, I have. I think it’s a beautiful approach, especially because these practices have affected life and living or affects lives and living for good and for bad. But I’m sure the conference is there to address the bad, spillage, insecurity, and threat to life. When there are cases of spillage and farmland are affected.
T.I: Even the social impact.
Obed: You get ahead in all of that. I think it’s really beautiful that CSR-in-Action is putting this together to deal with it. And it’s been consistently happening for this.
T.I: This is the 11th.
Obed: It’s really beautiful that the consistency is because these challenges cannot totally be surmounted. But then if you keep quiet, adjustments will not be made. I think it’s really beautiful that these things are addressed.
T.I: Thank you very much. But Thelma, what is the theme for this year’s conference? What should we expect? What should the attendees expect this year?
Thelma: Thank you, TI. Well, the theme for this year is Holistic Inclusion in the Extractive Industries. What do I mean by this? This is our approach to trying to bring a balance in the extractive industry. And we’re going to be having amazing sections. We are going to be having panning sections. It’s going to be a networking platform, even an exposure platform. And what makes this year special is that we are going to be presenting the CAHR Awards Africa 2022 live at that same conference.
T.I: Okay.
T.I: So for those of you that don’t know, the CAHR Awards Africa is the Community and Human Rights Awards. It’s pronounced “car”, as per the motto, car. CAHR awards. It provides a platform that celebrates businesses, individuals contributing to social justice and recognising the rights of communities contributing to the economic prosperity of Nigeria. In three years, CAHR Awards Africa has recognized and appreciated outstanding individuals, organisations performing excellently well in these areas of human rights and community engagement. Thelma, I’m aware that there are nine categories of this CAHR Awards Africa. Do you want to share some of these categories with us?
Thelma: Okay. We have different awards that are recognising people in leadership. We have awards for community engagement. We also have human rights. For example, we have the Funmilayo Ransom Kuti Award, and that’s divided into two categories where we recognise individuals and companies that are fighting for human rights, people that want to give their all to make sure that there’s a balance. And this award is not just in Nigeria, we recognise all countries in Africa. So, it’s amazing.
T.I: Nice. So can you work us through it? Are there individual categories? Are there company categories or it’s just all individual categories?
Thelma: As I said earlier, there are two categories that recognise companies. The award is divided among individuals and also companies. We recognize people that are giving their all for human rights and community engagement. And like I said earlier, the award categories have different things that they do. We recognize leadership, and people that are astounding, we recognize human rights and also community engagement. Giving back to your community is very important.
T.I: You talk about the awards that are going to happen, what else? Panel sessions, conferences. What should we expect? If I’m not going to be nominated as a community and human rights person, what else should I expect? Networking? What speakers are coming in?
Thelma: Okay, thank you so much. Well, for the SITEI conference, we have people from the media, people from the government, people from academia. We also have organisations that have attended it previously. We have, for example, TOTAL, they’ve done this before with us. Lagos Business School, TOTAL, Chevron, Access Bank, Guinness, Coca-Cola, and the rest of it. So, imagine being in a hall with those people asking questions, direct questions. You could see that networking exposure, it’s on a different level.
T.I: Stakeholder engagement. Okay. So, for the CAHR Awards Africa, as an individual, if I have been giving back to my community, if I have been fighting human rights, what are the processes? I know that if I’ve been fighting for human rights, what are the processes to get nominated? Am I supposed to nominate myself or have an excellent person nominate me?
T.I: Well, first of all, there’s a call for nominations. For this year’s SITEI, we opened our portal for call for nominations. You could nominate yourself, or someone else could nominate you. Then after nominations, we have the internal review. Yes, you all can nominate yourself and other people, but we’ll have to review whatever you are doing and verify that, yes, you could be part of that category. After which we had the commencement of voting, and that was sometime last month. That took about two weeks for us to make sure that people come out to give their all. You see these people around doing so many beautiful works. People had to come out to show that, yes, what they are doing is actually the right and good thing. Then after the call for voting, we have the validation of nominations. This is where our jurors, like if you go to our social media pages, you’re going to see the jurors. And the jurors are not just picked from Nigeria, but from all over Africa, to tell you how transparent our own processes are. And lastly, we have a presentation of awards that are going to be happening live at the SITEI conference 2022. I want you all to be there.
T.I: All right. Thank you so very much. If you want to call in, and find out more about the SITEI conference, about the CAHR Awards, the number to call is 0700 923 923 923. The number to call is 0700 923 923 923. And if you want to send a WhatsApp message, please send it to 0817 313 6193. 0817 3136193. So, we’ll be expecting your call. So, Thelma, wait, we have a caller? Hello? Okay, so I think we lost that caller. We’ll continue talking about the SITEI conference and CAHR Awards Africa. Let’s go on a commercial break.
T.I: Welcome back to the Good Citizen Show. We are talking about the SITEI conference, that’s the Sustainability and Extractive Industry Conference 2022 and the CAHR Awards Africa. And so, for our callers, do you want to call in? This is the number to call in and just find out more about the SITEI and the CAHR Awards conference. The number is 0700 923 923 923. If you want to send us a WhatsApp message, the number to call is 0817 313 6193. 0817 313 6193. Okay, so still at the SITEI conference. Thelma, what has the conference been over the years?
Thelma: I’ll say it’s been a whole lot of work. Doing this 10 times and this is the 11th time. I could still remember the first one which was back in 2012. That was our maiden edition. The theme then was Managing the Value Chain. That conference was held in partnership with partnership..
T.I: Okay, we have a caller. We lost the caller. Okay, keep going, Thelma.
Thelma: Okay. Our Maiden Conference was in partnership with the Canadian Deputy High Commission. And over the years, we’ve done it 10 times, as I said. And in 2020, we focused our attention on the women in host communities, and women in extractive communities. And that led to the production of our first docu-drama. Yes, CSR-in-Action has a docu-drama. It is called. Earth Women. And if you actually come to our conference, you would get to watch the full drama. But you could go on our social media platforms, there are thrillers on that particular docu-drama.
So the premiere of Earth Women, like I was saying, is a documentary to expose the challenges that people in the extractive communities face. People, women in particular, and people that live in the extractive communities. We realized there are so many things happening. When you go to places like the Niger Delta and the rest of it, you get to hear stories of women that have suffered a lot due to the spillage and all of that. So, we decided to capture all these moments. And yes, we’ve won three awards on this.
T.I: Nice. Okay. So, this year’s theme, you said was about holistic. Can you walk us through the theme for this year?
Thelma: Holistic Inclusion. When you think of the word inclusion, it’s more like telling you that it’s a certain number of people. They are trying to include a certain… Bringing more people. Yeah. So, we’re looking at the women. People, you look at the extractive industry. When you talk about it..
T.I: What is it with this inclusion?
Obed: The concern is we’re talking about holistic inclusion and we cannot refute the fact that I admire the beauty of the fact that the company, the initiative is deliberate to pay attention to women. But when we are saying holistic and we’re still looking at more women, what happened to their sons that are suffering from me? I’m just saying. Don’t you think this holistic should be brought? Don’t you think you do, guys? Are we looking at a conference where you’re going to have just women? Is that what you’re saying? No. Okay, so let’s have them because I feel there are people listening out there that probably think it’s going to be a women’s conference.
T.I: No, it’s not a women’s conference. When you.
Thelma: Look at the stories of women, that’s what I mean by holistic inclusion. When you look at the women that have been affected by the problems of what the extractive industries have caused, we want to put our focus on them. What could they do? What are the problems they are facing? What solutions do they need? And, I think these people have children, right? When they have the benefit of things that they could do, it’s those.
Yeah, exactly.
T.I: Yeah. But have you watched a docu-drama?
Obed: I haven’t seen it.
T.I: You have to pay for a private screening of that docu-drama. Yes, because if you have watched it, you won’t be asking us.
Obed: This question. No, the reason I asked this question is not for my benefit, but for people listening out there that probably I’m not able to call at the moment. I was just spreading out on the other half to let them understand that is not a gender end. No, of course not. It’s open to everyone and anyone. Do you get it? That’s just that.
T.I: The conversation is not just going to be about women. We’re going to have industry experts, and industry stakeholders. We’re going to have regulatory bodies. We’re going to have government bodies come and talk about the issues that we have identified in these extractive communities, in these mining and agricultural communities, and possible ESG practices. That’s the Environmental, Social, and Governance Practices that then can be taken over going forward. These are the practices that the businesses, the organisations would then be imbibing going forward. It’s not just a female or a women conference. Okay.
- I: Where is this event? When, where and what time? Is there any cost to enter this event?
Thelma: okay, so the event is going to be hybrid. If you are in Lagos and your Tuesday is very free, or you could make your Tuesday very free, come live Tuesday, 22nd of November 2022. And the location is Four Point by Sheraton Victoria Island, Lagos. Or you could join virtually. You could register on our website, www.sitei.org. When you register, you could pick to register in person or virtually.
Obed: Okay, a question, please, because people need to understand. Spell the word SITEI so they could know because I could have a lot of spellings for SITEI.
It’s spelled.
S – I- T-E- I S, that’s Sustainability. I- In T- the, E- Extractive I- Industries.
Obed: So it’s Sustainability. So www.sitei.com is the website, you’ll find register for the event and can join virtually. Yes. All right. You asked what it would cost to be a part of the event. Jesus has paid it all or there’s a gateway. We just want to know.
Thelma: Well, there’s a mini gateway.
Obed: There’s a mini gateway?
Thelma: Yes, there’s a mini gateway.
Obed: Mini? Yes. We are listening to Victoria Island mini gateway. Hit us.
Thelma: Well, the gateway is your presence. Yeah. It’s free to come to learn at that conference. We want you there, but you will have to register on our website using www.sitei.org. Slots are limited, so you could rush there now to go book one.
Obed: All right. So, to register is www.sitei.org. Okay, so that’s different from… That’s your website?
Thelma: Yes, that’s our website.
Obed: Not. com.
Thelma: No. Org.
Obed: To everybody listening to us across the world it is sitei.org
Thelma: Yes, SITEI.org.
T.I: I just wanted to highlight the profile of attendees. Over the years, we’ve had corporate bodies, we have, like I said, government bodies, media, investors, people from the civil society, the youth, government, and international organisations. We have people from academia. So, Thelma, do you want to mention a few things, a few notable achievements of CT?
Thelma: So over the years, SITEI has increased the voice of youth and women in the extractive industry. Can you put a round of applause for CSR-in-Action? Also, we have been able to.
Yes, we’ve been able to train over 300 CSOs. And, you know, just yesterday we organised a training. It’s called C-PET training. You could go to our website to see about, it and learn about it. Beautiful pictures, beautiful activities. We’ve also increased the discussion of local content in transparency and accountability within the extractive industries. And we’ve been able to explain, using our award-winning documentary, The Earth Women to showcase the challenges particular to women in the extractive communities. It is not just for women alone. It’s not just for very old people. It’s not just for professionals. There are young people out there that want to know more about mining, the agricultural sector, and even oil and gas. So, you all are invited to the conference.
T.I: All right, thank you so much, Thelma. Before we go, I just want to highlight some of the benefits of the Car Awards. For those of you, individuals and organisations who are wondering what is the benefit of this Car Awards, this Community and Human Rights Awards, I would like to emphasize so people understand CAHR in this context. Car, yes. Like it again. So, they don’t think it’s a Vehicle Award. They can understand exactly.
Community and Human Rights Awards. So it is spelled C-A-H-R-. Community and Human Rights Awards. So, some of the benefits drive sustainability. Increasingly, social entrepreneurs are required to show how they intend to sustainably carry out their missions to aid the social cause. And so, according to David Hodgson, a co-founder of Echoing Green, a New York-based nonprofit, he says the remark of a successful social venture has always been a resource magnetism. So being nominated for these awards then puts you up for international recognition. It also creates a sense of immortality because it is a result of an endowment program. So, it can serve as a lasting tribute, a lasting tribute to the endowment sponsor, and extend the value for future generations and online through word of mouth. Lastly, I want to say that one of the benefits of the CAHR Award is it promotes collaboration. Some of the award winners, particularly in the individual category, they’ve been able to come together and work on different projects and then reach more communities.
Obed: All right, so let’s just get the address again. We’re running out of time. Let’s get the address again to people that want to join and those that want to join, virtually what they ought to do. Thank you.
Thelma: Okay, so it is happening live on Tuesday, November 22, 2022. And it’s going to be at four points by Sheraton, Victoria Island, Lagos. Then, if you will not be able to make it physically, you can join online. You just must register using our website, like we said, www.sitei.org. Once you register there, a link will be sent to you to join virtually.
Obed: You also talked about the event. If you must join virtually or complete events. You did a free ticket thing to register.
Thelma: Totally free.
Obed: But you need to register, so let them have that address too.
Thelma: Okay? You must register on our website www.cta.org to be able to get the link to join virtually.
T.I: All right. Thank you so much for today Thelma thank you so much Obed for today’s edition. We hope that you have learned something about our CTA conference and our Car Awards. Once again, let’s endeavor to get our PVCs. Thank you all for listening. Have a lovely weekend ahead. Until next time, let’s continue to be a light to one another. This show is brought to you by CSR in Action and proudly sponsored by Act Foundation. Till next time, stay safe and God bless. Bye.
