By Spice Editorial
Persons affected by the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) project, have petitioned China calling for thorough reflection before deciding to finance the construction of the EACOP that will run from Hoima District in Bunyoro Region, mid-western Uganda.
The East African Crude Oil Pipeline Affected People’s Network (EACOP-N), the petitioners say a total of 2,461 households affected by the EACOP, Kingfisher and Tilenga oil projects in Hoima, Kikuube and Buliisa districts respectively are concerned over reports that China Export and Credit Insurance Corporation (Sinosure) and the Export-Import (ExIm) Bank of China are set to provide financial support to the EACOP project.
The Project Affected Persons (PAPs) under their umbrella body – EACOP-N highlight a number of problems associated with the oil projects both in Uganda and Tanzania.
“The displacement……..has caused impacts such as food stress, income losses, school dropouts and failure by many project affected persons to replace their property due to delayed payment, inadequate and unfair compensation among others,” the petition reads in part.
They also report an increase in human-wildlife conflict arising from oil drilling in Murchison Falls National Park, loss of crops and some people being killed by elephants at a higher rate compared to the past before the project.
As such, they want the Sinosure and China ExIm Bank to conduct an independent field visit before making any decision pertaining to the EACOP citing environmental concerns giving them up to November 10, 2023 to get back to them in regard to their request.
The petition signed by Clinton Bikorwa, the Interim Coordinator of the EACOP-N of Uganda and Richard Sekondo of the Organisation for Community Empowerment (OCE) of Tanzania, follows Uganda’s Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development, Irene Bateebe’s September 2023 statement that the Exim Bank of China and Sinosure were ready to provide more than half of the $3b EACOP project loan.
The statement is reportedly owned by six out of the 10 districts of Uganda and the PAPs of Hanang, Kiteto and 2 Simanjiro districts of Manyara region in Tanzania where the EACOP will pass in those in the countries.
