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AG okays disclosure of oil agreements amidst international pressure

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2 years ago

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The oil companies expressed no objection to disclosing the agreements.

The Attorney General, Kiryowa Kiwanuka, has given the Ugandan government a green light to disclose the international oil contracts to the public.

This comes after the oil companies said they have no objections to publicising the oil contracts. Kiwanuka’s advice is likely to be welcomed by civil society and Ugandan citizens who have long called for transparency in the oil and mining sectors. Kiwanuka, in a letter dated July 2, 2024, advised the minister of Finance, Matia Kasaija that he was at liberty to disclose the production sharing agreements (PSAs) if he deemed it appropriate.

In a letter dated July 2, 2024, Kiwanuka advised Finance minister Matia Kasaija that he may disclose the production sharing agreements (PSAs) if he deems it appropriate. This guidance was in response to a letter from Kasaija dated June 1, 2024. However, Kiwanuka’s advice specifically pertains only to contracts with TotalEnergies Uganda and CNOOC Uganda Limited. He cited letters from these companies, dated July 18, 2021, and November 29, 2021, respectively, which confirmed their consent to the disclosure of their PSAs to fulfil the requirements of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) standard 2.4.

“Therefore, we advise that should you deem it appropriate you are at liberty to disclose the PSAs as prescribed by the EITI standard requirement,” reads the letter copied to the minister of Energy and Mineral Development, state minister for Minerals, deputy attorney general.

The letter was also copied to the permanent secretary/secretary to the treasury, ministry of Finance, permanent secretary ministry of Energy, solicitor general and deputy solicitor general. A member of the civil society who had seen the letter however said it was silent concerning the contracts signed with other companies involved in oil exploration in the Albertine area.

Some of those include DGR Energy Turaco Uganda SMC Limited which is a unit of Australia’s DGR Global and state-owned Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC) and Nigeria’s Oranto. From Kiwanuka’s advice, it appears that the contracts signed with UNOC and mining contracts will remain a secret.

Uganda has been a member of the EITI since August 2020, committing to contract transparency by publicly disclosing the full text of agreements governing the exploitation of oil, gas, and mineral resources. By joining the EITI, Uganda aimed to enhance transparency, strengthen tax collection, promote public debate, improve the investment climate, and create lasting value from its petroleum and mineral resources.

This week, EITI executive director Mark Robinson visited Uganda to assess the country’s progress in ensuring transparency in the oil, gas, and minerals sectors. Robinson was accompanied by Suneeta Kaimal, president and CEO of the Natural Resource Governance Institute (NRGI), which has been instrumental in building the capacity of Ugandan civil society, media, parliamentarians, and government ministries on natural resource governance.

EITI executive director Nark Robinson
EITI executive director Nark Robinson

NRGI has supported capacity building of Ugandan civil society, media, parliamentarians, and ministries on natural resources governance, especially in accountability and governance. Robinson and Kaimal on Thursday met the minister of Finance, Matia Kasaijja, and his officers and discussed the progress in ensuring public disclosure of contracts under the extractive sector.

He also met officers from the Attorney General’s office and the key industry players like TotalEnergies and members of the civil society under multi-stakeholder groups (MSGs) hosted at the Uganda EITI secretariat under the ministry of Finance.  Robinson told journalists that his team found it so striking that all the stakeholders in Uganda were committed to the EITI process.

”The EITI seemed to have curved out open space in Uganda for genuine, free, and open debate on these complex issues around the extractive industry,” he said.

RObison’s visit to Uganda follows the validation report on Uganda whose results were released in May 2024. The EITI board said Uganda had achieved a moderate score in implementing the 2019 EITI Standard at 78.5 points. The overall score reflects an average of the three component scores on stakeholder engagement, transparency, and outcomes and impact. On the transparency component, Uganda achieved a fairly low score of 67.5 points. Robinson while meeting the minister raised some of these issues.

“We identified some of the improvements that could be made. He was very receptive. For example, how can contracts further be made open to the public? So there is a process to move towards that goal,” he said.

He confirmed that they discussed making public the audited accounts of Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC).

“He was very receptive to that idea. So I was very struck by their receptivity and recognition from the government to respond positively to some of the recommendations,” added Robinson.

Sources who attended the meeting with the minister said he asked his visitors about what Uganda would gain from its participation with EITI. Robinson said the minister’s question was good because it reconfirmed why Uganda signed up to the EITI. The EITI board had reported that there had been little progress on full disclosures of contracts in the oil sector despite Uganda EITI’s (UGEITI) efforts.

The EITI board also noted that beneficial ownership data was not available though there had been reforms put to create a national beneficial ownership registry. Robinson seemed to have had information to the effect that TotalEnergies and CNOOC Uganda had written no objection letters to the disclosure of the PSAs signed with the government of Uganda.

“Uganda has to demonstrate real progress on making the contracts public. That needs to happen not just those two but across the sector,” he said.

Robinson emphasized the need for Uganda to demonstrate real progress in making contracts public across the entire sector, not just with TotalEnergies and CNOOC. He also called for the creation of a public registry of beneficial owners in the oil, gas, and mining sectors and the reconciliation of discrepancies in gold production data.

“The fourth one is to reconcile some of the discrepancies in the mining data, especially gold production,” added Robison.

Asked why they were insistent on gold data, he said, “It is so important in many countries. And it is one of your major minerals in Uganda that has significant and considerable revenue. That is why gold matters so much than other sectors of the mining,” he said.

Gold, one of Uganda’s major minerals, has been a focal point due to its significant revenue potential. A recent UN report highlighted Uganda, Rwanda, and Burundi as key transit routes for gold smuggled from the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo to Dubai. In Uganda, discrepancies have been noted between gold production figures reported by the Bank of Uganda and those declared by Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) customs.

David Sserwadda, a senior mining inspector, and a member of the Uganda EITI Multisector Group said there is an effort to ensure that different agencies of the government don’t regulate gold exports. He revealed that there had been a meeting with the customs department on how to align gold export in the sense that when it is not cleared, the customs should not allow the export. Uganda has to close some of those before the next EITI board validation commencing on July 1, 2026.

Source: The Observer

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Nabakooba orders probe into 1,500-acre land dispute

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20 hours ago

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September 18, 2026

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Lands minister Judith Nabakooba has ordered an investigation into people suspected of illegally converting nearly 1,500 acres of customary land in Nakapiripirit District into freehold land and obtaining a title without the consent of the local community.

Located in Kawach Sub-county, the disputed land is claimed by residents, who say it was given to them by government after part of the former Pian Upe Game Reserve was degazetted to resettle communities which had been displaced.

Local leaders say more than 12,000 households are affected by the dispute. Residents are against Nakapiripirit District Council speaker Richard Lochoto, who is alleged to have claimed ownership of part of the land and subsequently obtained a freehold title.

The dispute escalated after residents accused Mr Lochoto of working with members of the area land committee to process the land without consulting the community.
The minister, who visited the area to hear their grievances on September 7, handed the matter to the district security committee, headed by Resident District Commissioner Bessie Modesta Ajirong for investigation.

She directed the security team to collect all relevant information and submit a report within two weeks.
Ms Nabakooba said those found to have participated in the alleged conversion of the customary land into freehold should be arrested. She also ordered investigations into claims that signatures of local leaders were forged during the transactions.

“If there are people whose signatures were forged, we shall get a handwriting expert to establish whether they actually signed the transfer documents,” she said.
Ms Nabakooba said if investigations establish that the title was obtained fraudulently, the title will be cancelled and the land will be returned to the community.

She further directed the Ministry of Lands officials to assist residents in forming a Communal Land Association (CLA), to enable them to collectively register and manage the land.
“This will keep your land safe from grabbers. You will be in a position to decide on different land uses,” Ms Nabakooba said.

According to documents accessed by the Monitor, an approved land file for registration of a freehold title was forwarded to the commissioner land registration on November 4, 2021.
Another document of a freehold offer dated October 25, 2021, showed that the district land board had approved a grant of freehold to Mr Lochoto, following an application dated October 2, 2018.

The offer indicated that the land was intended for farming and required the applicant to meet costs related to surveying, registration and issuance of the certificate of title, as well as compensation of any sitting tenants.
The documents further show that Mr Lochoto stated that the land was vacant. The form also contained names and signatures of members of the Area Land Committee, who recommended the applicant to the District Land Board.

However, residents disputed the claim that the land was vacant, saying the community had been using and laying plans for the land before the freehold application was processed.
Mr Paul Longok Lochio, the Okudud Village chairperson, said the land was important to the community because residents had increasingly turned to farming, following improvements in security in Karamoja.

He said many residents previously depended largely on cattle and guns for their livelihoods, but the restoration of peace had enabled communities to embrace agriculture.
“Farming is a source of food for many families here. That is why land is very important to us,” Mr Longok said.
He accused land grabbers of taking advantage of illiteracy among residents to process land documents.

The Kawach Sub-county chairperson, Ms Angella Gabriel Aroor, who served as the chairperson of the area land committee at the time of the transaction, said the local leadership was not informed when the land was being surveyed.
“How can you survey land without our signatures? How can you go behind our backs and approve things which we were not informed about?” he asked.

The community now seeks a fresh survey by the Ministry of Lands to establish the actual size and boundaries of the disputed land.
Residents say they want to use part of the land to establish a community market, specifically for cattle traders.
Ms Esther Anyakun, the Nakapiripirit Woman MP and State minister for Karamoja Affairs, said government should protect this land because it was intended to benefit communities that had previously been displaced from other areas.

She said residents had petitioned the government over lack of land after people were evicted from areas occupied by government institutions, including prison land and other protected areas.
“This particular land was given to communities by government because many people were found to be squatters on prison land and had no where to go,” Ms Anyakun said.
Ms Anyakun warned that the land dispute had become tense, with rival groups allegedly threatening one another.

She urged the District Land Board to conduct physical verification before approving applications involving large chunks of land.
She advised the board to conduct ground checks whenever applications for 10 or more acres are submitted, to establish whether the land exists, whether it is occupied and whether there are competing claims.

The Nakapiripirit District Land Board secretary, Mr Jobs Ilukol, said the board had followed procedures required in processing Mr Lochoto’s application.
He said the board relied on records and minutes submitted by the Area Land Committee before considering the application.

Mr Ilukol said the District Land Board does not own or sell land and only processes applications based on documents submitted to it.
“The board’s job ends after approving or rejecting an application. The applicant is responsible for pursuing registration and obtaining a certificate of title,” he said.

Source: monitor.co.ug

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Lira siblings reclaim father’s land after bitter family dispute

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September 18, 2026

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Krispus Adula and his aunt, Betty Akello, plant maize in their garden in Teyao Village, Ogur Sub-county, Lira District, on September 15, 2026. PHOTO/BILL OKETCH.

On a sunny Tuesday afternoon, Crispus Adula dug into the soil with a hand hoe in Teyao Village, Alwala Parish, Ogur Sub-county in Lira District. Behind him, his aunt, Betty Akello, followed slowly, planting maize seeds in a garden the family had spent months fighting to reclaim.

The land is part of 12 gardens that once belonged to Adula’s late father, Sylvesto Obile, and was formally restored to Adula and his two sisters, Jacklyn Anam and Immaculate Auma, on September 15, 2026.

Mr Obile died in 2019, leaving his children still young. Their mother, Silvia Amony, left the family home shortly afterwards and died in 2022.

Following their father’s burial, members of the Abwor Bako Omorikidi Clan met and agreed to place the children in the custody of their cousin, Oyugi. He was also entrusted with the family’s property, including the 12 gardens, four cattle, chickens and household belongings.

“After being handed over to our cousin, I dropped out of school in Primary Three because he was not taking good care of us,” Adula told Monitor.

He said that after turning 17 in 2025, he asked clan members to allow him and his siblings to return to their former homestead and begin living independently.

“So, when I reached 17 years of age in 2025, I demanded that clan members allow my siblings and me to go back to our former homestead, where our father died and left us, to start living on our own,” he said.

The siblings left Oyugi’s home in January 2025, prompting clan leaders to convene a meeting to formally return the family’s property.

By then, however, the cattle and chickens had disappeared, while Oyugi had reportedly hired out most of the 12 gardens to tenants and collected payments from them.

“It was only the gardens remaining,” Adula said. “But out of the 12 pieces, our cousin had hired out most of them, and he had taken money from those people.”

Clan members ordered Oyugi to return the land, and he agreed, except for two gardens which he claimed he had sold to raise money for the children’s school fees.

The dispute escalated when the siblings went to reclaim the two gardens.

“Our cousin came with his wife and found us digging the land, and they threatened to kill one of my sisters with a panga (machete) he was holding,” Adula recalled.

“We overpowered them, took the panga, and ran to the clan leader, and eventually to the LC1 chairman of Teyao Village, who referred us to the police,” he added.

According to Prossy Akello, an attorney with Redeem International, Oyugi and his wife later returned and began digging the same garden despite the children having reported the matter to police.

Police at Ogur Central Police Station charged the couple with criminal trespass and threatening violence before referring the case to Redeem International.

The organisation, a nonprofit that works with local law enforcement to combat violence and exploitation against widows and orphans in developing countries, supported the investigation and prosecution through its Lira City Field Office.

“We supported the police to conclude the investigation they had initiated, and then we supported the complainants to follow up the case — ensuring they were always present in court, and that their witnesses were always transported to attend,” Ms Akello said.

Redeem International also helped Adula return to school.

“We usually don’t pay school fees or give scholarships,” Ms Akello said, “but in this case our social worker did a needs assessment, and we looked out for other partners within Lira. We were able to secure a scholarship for Crispus, and right now he’s studying at one of the technical schools in Lira.”

Police completed their investigation, and Oyugi and his wife were summoned, recorded statements and were later arraigned before Lira Magistrate’s Court.

“The accused pleaded not guilty, and we had to go for a full trial,” Ms Akello said. “Judgment was delivered in June.”

Because both sides claimed ownership of the two disputed gardens, Magistrate Jonathan William Wamimbi ruled that either party could pursue a civil claim in court to determine ownership.

In the meantime, the magistrate ordered that the children, who were already in possession of the land, continue using it.

“That is why the children are still using the land,” Ms Akello said. “We’ve come back [today, September 15, 2026] to officially inform the public that these children will remain in possession until any other person moves to court by way of a civil suit to claim ownership.”

Bosco Adwale, clan chief of Abwor Bako Omorikidi, called for reconciliation between the relatives.

“Now that the matter has been resolved, we’re asking the children to forgive their cousin brother and his wife, for peace to prevail,” he said.

Bosco Otim, LC2 chairman of Alwala Parish and a member of the Area Land Committee, said the dispute also exposed a wider challenge of undocumented land ownership in the area.

“In the entire Teyao Village, there is only one person who has processed a land title,” he said.

John Kalisto Apita, a clan leader, said the dispute had been complicated but called on residents to learn from the case.

“This was a very complicated case, but I thank God it has been put to rest. I ask members of the community to pick a lesson from this land dispute,” he said.

Lira Assistant Resident District Commissioner Richard Okello [centre] hands over a package donated by Redeem International to Krispus Adula after he was officially restored to his land in Ogur Sub-county on September 15, 2026. PHOTO/COURTESY.

Michael Odongo, LC3 chairman of Ogur Sub-county, urged families to follow the law when distributing property left behind by deceased relatives.

Oyugi, for his part, said he no longer holds a grudge against his cousins and attributed his actions to being misled by “the devil”.

Jane Acola of Redeem International’s Lira Field Office said the case reflected a wider challenge facing widows and orphans in northern Uganda, where many households depend on land for their livelihoods.

“The majority of our people in northern Uganda derive their livelihood mainly from agriculture, but for production to take place there must be land. When there is a land conflict, you cannot do anything,” she said.

Source: monitor.co.ug

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After weeks behind bars, six anti-oil activists have been granted cash bail by the LDC Court.

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2 days ago

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September 17, 2026

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By the Witness Radio team.

After more than two weeks in detention, six young activists challenging Uganda’s oil projects have secured cash bail, facing unlawful assembly charges.

All six belong to the Rooted in Resistance movement. On Thursday, September 17, they appeared before the LDC Magistrate’s Court in Kampala, where the court granted each cash bail of Shs300,000.

The activists granted bail are Isaac Mukiibi, Alphat Mawanda, Nicholas Mugezi, Innocent Opio, John Friday and Ronald Onyango.

Rooted in Resistance, formerly known as Students Against EACOP, has emerged as a steadfast force challenging the spread of fossil fuels in Uganda.

The activists were held in Luzira Maximum Security Prison after being arrested during demonstrations in Kampala against Uganda’s ongoing fossil fuel projects.

The activists were charged with unlawful assembly under the Penal Code Act.

Section 65(1) of the Act defines an unlawful assembly as a gathering of three or more people who intend to commit an offense, behave in a way that creates reasonable fear, or gather without a legitimate reason in circumstances likely to provoke others to breach the peace.

Under Section 66, taking part in an unlawful assembly is a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, carries a maximum sentence of one year in prison.

On August 31, 2026, police arrested the six during Kampala demonstrations, as Rooted in Resistance rallied against Uganda’s oil development.

Determined to be heard, the activists tried to deliver petitions to Parliament and TotalEnergies offices in Kampala, urging closer examination of oil projects and rejecting further fossil fuel investment.

During the demonstrations, police detained a total of 16 activists.

Police arrested ten at Parliament and charged them with public nuisance, while arresting six more at RR Pearl Tower One on Yusuf Lule Road, where TotalEnergies’ offices are located.

The six soon appeared before the LDC Magistrate’s Court, where they were remanded to Luzira Prison.

The activists say their resistance stems from concerns about the environmental and social fallout of oil development, especially its impact on communities, livelihoods, and the natural world.

They are urging a shift toward investing in renewable energy, rather than pouring more resources into fossil fuel infrastructure.

After the court granted bail, Rooted in Resistance celebrated the release of its members but condemned what it sees as ongoing attempts to silence their movement through arrests and charges.

“We will never be intimidated by the continued trumped-up charges and the brutal arrests being subjected to us,” the group said in a statement following the release on its X handle.

The group pledged to keep rallying for an oil-free economy and what it calls true economic freedom.

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