That accounts for about 10 percent of Nigeria's current daily output of about 2 million barrels per day - already significantly down from the amount produced before years of militant attacks on oil infrastructure.

The militant leader said the militants were considering using the kidnapped American as a bargaining chip in their effort to free a militant leader who is in prison on charges of arms dealing and terrorism.

Attacks against offshore facilities are exceedingly rare.

Militant attacks on oil infrastructure have reduced by about a quarter the total oil production in Nigeria, which is Africa's biggest producer and a member of OPEC.

Despite being the home of almost all of Nigeria's petroleum reserves, the country's south is as desperately poor as the rest of Nigeria, Africa's most populous country with 140 million people.

The diplomatic cable quotes Uranta as blaming "no more than 15 percent" of oil thefts on militants operating in the delta, a tropical maze of creeks and waterways about the size of South Carolina. Instead, politicians, retired admirals and generals and others in the country's elite profit from the thefts. Typically, thieves solder or cut into oil pipelines running through the mangrove swamps of the delta. Some refine the crude into kerosene or diesel in crude refineries, while other oil sails out to foreign ports for sale.

The large-scale theft, compounded by anger over unceasing poverty and pollution in the delta despite 50 years of oil production, led to an uprising of militants in the region beginning in 2006. Military-grade weapons funneled into the region, turning gunrunners into militant leaders who espoused political ideas — but kept their eyes on the profits from stolen oil.

. More than 20 million people depend on the freshwater lake for their survival.

But it's been shrinking over the past 50 years and satellite images show it is now just a twentieth of its former size.

Huge expanses of water are now nothing more than a series of ponds and islands, and the once-fertile land that surrounds the lake is now dusty and barren.

"The lake is in the process of disappearing and the lake feeds many people, not just here but in other countries like Nigeria, Cameroon and Niger," he continued. "They are all people who live on Lake Chad."

Locals report that they are catching less fish and the ones that they do catch are smaller than they used to be.

A declining stock could have devastating consequences far beyond the water's edge, says Yakowra Mallom, from UNICEF.

There are no more fish. There's no more milk, no maize, no vegetables or cereal."

Local communities say the changing weather is the biggest reason for the shrinking of the lakes shores. The necessary irrigation of farming land has also been a factor.

A small local group is trying to save the surrounding land by planting trees in the villages that have been worst affected by desertification. If they cannot bring back the lake, they hope there will at least be workable land.

thieves have cost Nigeria an average of around 100,000 ba

rrels of crude oil per day.

Financial analysts, meanwhile, said that Nigeria is benefiting from the rising price of crude oil.

Oil prices are at two-year highs in part because of the civil war raging in Libya, Africa's top oil producer.

Officials at the Nigerian Financial Derivatives Co. told Nigerian newspaper Next that tensions in the Middle East were a "blessing" for Nigeria.

Libya holds around 44 billion barrels of oil reserves, the largest in Africa.”

The sudden change in Libya, a fallout of the democratic fervour blowing across North Africa and the Middle East, now meant that Libya oil supplies are in jeopardy, pushing the supply pressure on Nigeria and Angola.

Comments :   Now Nigerians,Africans & all the world can see the reason why IMF wants SANUSI TO DEVALUE NIGERIAN NAIRA so that the WESTERN WORLD will gain.SANUSI MAY THE GOD ALMITHY continue to strenghten u $ MR PRESIDENT never to listen to those animal impersonators.They thought u wiil be like IBB & others. Posted by: wyclef kojak , on Sunday, February 27, 2011 Report this comment This is a great opportunity for our country to make profits and use them for infrastructural development. I hope our government has the right sense to invest and appropriate this. Instead of diverting them for selfish and political purposes. Posted by: OgaFatai , on Saturday, February 26, 2011 Report this comment

2011 Budget Proposal: $27.6bn Ministries: $12bn Other government bodies: $350m Parliament: $707m Pensions and gratuities: $1bn Transfers to statuary bodies: $1.3bn Debt payments: $3.5bn Other expenses: $2.6bn TOTAL RUNNING COSTS: $21bn CAPITAL EXPENDITURE: $6.5bn

"You can't provide education, health or security without resources generated from a robust economy," he said.

The president's proposal for this year's national budget, which is currently before parliament, shows that nearly 75% of the $27.6bn (£17bn) would be spent on running government and its agencies.

Only $6.5bn is proposed for spending on capital projects, such as investment in vital infrastructure.