DEFENDING LAND AND ENVIRONMENTAL RIGHTS

Hundreds of families affected by several dev’t projects in Kiryandongo turn up in big numbers as Masindi High Court attends to their cases filed in 2020.

Published

4 years ago

April 25, 2022

witnessradio.org

Some of the affected families turn up in big numbers at the Masindi High court for hearing of their cases.

By Witness Radio Team

Hundreds of families on Wednesday 20th and Thursday 21st gathered at the Masindi High Court for the first hearing of the human rights suits filed against multinational companies. The families from Jerusalem, Kisalanda, Kapapula, Nyamutende, Kikungulu, Canani, Kamisoni, and Kololo villages, amongst others in the Kiryandongo District all affected by large-scale agriculture operations of multinational companies. Kiryandongo sugar Company Limited, Agilis Partners Limited, and Great Seasons SMC limited are implicated in human rights violations. Communities accuse multinationals of forced evictions and committing gross human rights violations and abuses that deprived them of their rights to property, food, education, and a good living.

The High Court had set Wednesday 20th April 2022 for a hearing of Miscellaneous Cause No. 11 of 2020 filed against Agilis Partners Limited and Thursday 21st April 2022 for a Miscellaneous Cause No. 007 of 2020 filed against Great Seasons SMC limited, but both cases were adjourned to the 20th of May, this year as some respondents on the case were not in court.

For the case against Agilis Partners Limited and others, the attorney general chambers and former Kiryandongo district police commander during 2017 and thereabout Byaruhanga Patrick were not in court while, for the case against Great Season SMC Limited and others, former Kiryandongo Police Commander during 2019 and thereabout Bakaleke Joseph neither did he attend court.

Court heard from applicants lawyers led by Kiiza and Mugisha Advocates that all former police commanders of Kiryandongo district could not be traced or located and get served as the duo have since been transferred from their known places of work and were re-deployed elsewhere. However, Masindi High Court extended the time of service for two weeks from the dates both suits were heard and guided the applicants’ lawyers to look for police officers.

Uganda Police Force is being held responsible for aiding multinationals and participating in committing violence and human rights violations while carrying out force evictions of local communities

48-year-old Mukangwizi Grace, a mother of five that was evicted by Agilis Partners Limited, boarded a Boda Boda to travel over 70 km distance from Kisalanda to Masindi town, where the High Court sits. “All my property on my 6 acres were destroyed including gardens and houses by the Agilis men at a gunpoint. I was not even given chance to pick my belongings,” she said in an interview with Witness Radio before the court session.

Currently, Grace rents land in the nearby Gasper center where she owns a makeshift structure covered with a tarpaulin as a roof. She said she borrows money from the Maize buyers and rents one acre of land at 150,000 Uganda Shillings (about 42 USD) each season to plant maize that she sells to pay back the borrowed money and the rest is milled for flour. This is the same for all evictees.

The land in question was settled on by two groups; the residents displaced by the northern war insurgency and those under the Nyamalebe Landless Association, who were also permitted to settle on the land by the government of Uganda through the Ministry of Lands, Housing, and Urban Development. But in 2017, their lives and dreams were shattered by the companies interested in large-scale commercial farming. Over 35,000 residents were evicted by the Kiryandongo-based multinationals with the assistance of state- agencies such as the police and the army.

The mother of five was one of those who braved the day to see the justice that they had long sought. “I needed to be in court to pin their abuses. These companies have disturbed us a lot. I had to borrow money from my relatives to cater for my transport. She was overwhelmed with happiness after the court started hearing their case and hopes for justice. We are only waiting for the court’s decision because these companies thought they are untouchables.” She said.

The Masindi High Court resident Judge, Justice Jesse Byaruhanga adjourned the two cases, to 20th May at 11 am. The victims’ lawyers said the Judge, for convenience and expeditious disposal of the matters, adjourned the two applications to the same date.

“We believe this time will be enough to serve the missing respondents though it has not been easier to trace these respondents.” Said Achak Carol Kay of M/s. Kiiza and Mugisha Advocates.

Mr. Wokulira Geoffrey Ssebaggala, on behalf of Witness Radio – Uganda which provides support to development-affected communities, said “we are happy that the court has finally allocated time to listen to the cries of poor local communities that have lost livelihood to ‘investors’. We want this to act as an example to other investors who do take the land of poor people for free and use violence as means to acquire land that your time is up”.

He said Ugandans deserve responsible investments that respect their land rights and bring real development.

Meanwhile Agilis Partners Limited continues to deny having forcefully evicted communities in the areas where they operate while the known contacts for Wycliffe Birungi, a lawyer for Great Season SMC Limited were switched off.

DEFENDING LAND AND ENVIRONMENTAL RIGHTS

Africa is capturing just 2% of its carbon credit potential

Published

3 days ago

April 12, 2026

witnessradio.org

From left: Andrew Gilder, director of Climate Legal; Olivia Tuchten, principal climate change adviser at Promethium Carbon; and Dr Olufunso Somorin, carbon markets coordinator at the African Development Bank, at a pre-summit carbon workshop, where Somorin outlined Africa’s carbon market potential. Image: Robyn Joubert

Africa is not living up to its carbon credit potential, despite rapidly growing global demand for emissions offsets. With more projects emerging in South Africa and across the continent, and agriculture uniquely positioned to develop them, carbon markets could unlock billions in investment.

Africa is generating barely 2% of its carbon credit potential and stands on the threshold of a multibillion‑dollar climate finance transformation. With the global carbon market currently valued at roughly US$1 trillion (around R16,8 trillion) and projected to grow to US$2,4 trillion (R40,2 trillion) by 2030, Africa could claim its share if it acts quickly and credibly.

“There is vast potential for Africa to use high-integrity carbon projects to not only achieve emissions reductions but also development interventions on the ground. […] But we need to scale up and do more,” Dr Olufunso Somorin, African Development Bank (AfDB) carbon markets coordinator, said at a pre-summit carbon workshop ahead of the Africa’s Green Economy Summit in Cape Town in late February.

He described the current moment as a ‘second global carbon order’; a shift from the Kyoto Protocol’s Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) to the new market architecture under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement.

Africa underperformed in the first crediting period, between 2007 and 2011, when it captured only a tiny slice of the more than US$200 billion (R3,2 trillion) invested in CDM projects.

“Close to 1 800 projects were approved globally. Only 33 were in Africa and only 16 in South Africa. We took too long to embrace the opportunity,” Somorin added.

Carbon markets

Carbon markets have expanded significantly since then. According to Somorin, around 28% of global greenhouse gas emissions are currently covered by carbon pricing mechanisms, compared with barely 5% two decades ago.

The compliance market, where regulated entities purchase or trade emission allowances, was valued at more than US$850 billion (R13,5 trillion) in 2021 and reached roughly US$1 trillion (R18,7 trillion) in annual traded emissions by the end of 2024.

The voluntary carbon market (VCM) is significantly smaller, valued at about US$2 billion (R33,5 billion) globally but projected to grow rapidly.

“Total demand for voluntary credits is expected to increase at least 15-fold by 2030, reaching between US$10 billion [R167 billion] and US$25 billion [R419 billion], and could expand up to 100-fold by 2050, reaching between US$90 billion [R1,5 trillion] and US$480 billion [R8 trillion],” Somorin said.

Africa’s small slice of the pie

He added that Africa accounts for roughly US$200 million (R3,4 billion) in the VCM (about 8% by value) while generating around 16% of global voluntary credits. About 100 carbon credit projects across 20 African countries generate an estimated 90 million tons of emission reductions annually.

VCM trading in Africa is concentrated in five countries: Kenya, Zimbabwe, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, and Uganda. Together, they account for about 70% of Africa’s carbon credit activity, with Kenya responsible for roughly 25% of the continent’s credits.

Credits are generated mainly from avoided deforestation and clean cooking projects, as well as land use, hydropower, wind, and solar energy.

Increasing scrutiny

However, the VCM has faced a lot of scrutiny in recent years. Trading volumes dipped in 2024 amid integrity concerns, although Somorin expects a reset under tighter standards.

The demand outlook is shaped by rising global temperatures. According to the Climate Action Tracker’s ‘Warming Projections Global Update November 2024’, the world is not on track to limit warming to 1,5°C and is heading towards 2,7°C by 2100.

“Many African countries are already achieving emissions reductions through carbon development projects, but they are not structuring them according to verification protocols. This limits their ability to earn carbon credits,” Somorin said.

Private climate flows

Africa holds an estimated 15% of global carbon sequestration potential, which could generate up to US$82 billion (R1,4 trillion) annually by 2050 under high-integrity market conditions.

Yet private capital flows into Africa’s climate finance sector remain low, accounting for roughly 18% of total flows.

“On average, Africa needs about US$280 billion [R4,7 trillion] in annual climate finance. We are attracting only US$52 billion [R872 billion] annually, which is only 20% of our needs. We need to close the gap,” Somorin said.

To boost readiness, in 2025, the AfDB launched the Africa Carbon Support Facility (ACSF), capitalised with US$100 million (R1,7 billion) to catalyse private investment, support regulatory development, and advance policy and Article 6 reforms.

“What I can tell you today is that we don’t have a demand problem. We have a supply problem of high-integrity credits, and a lot of financial interventions are required to close the gap,” he added.

Snapshots of successful carbon projects in Africa

Dr Olufunso Somorin highlighted several African carbon projects with the potential to deliver significant environmental and social benefits:

Rwanda: SPOUTS’ ceramic water filter project has issued more than 350 000 filters, delivering safe drinking water to more than 1,5 million people and avoiding about 1,5 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO₂e) by eliminating the need to boil water using non-renewable wood. This high-integrity project prevents more than 150 000t of wood use annually, thus protecting forests, and cutting indoor air pollution by around 90%.

South Africa: the uMkhanyakude Restoration Project in KwaZulu‑Natal is a high-integrity carbon project aimed at restoring degraded grasslands in the Maputaland–Pondoland–Albany biodiversity hotspot. Led by AfriWild and verified under Verra’s Grouped Landscape Management framework, the project will work closely with local communities, land stewards, and conservation managers to prevent overgrazing, enhance grassland regeneration, and increase market access for livestock and wildlife products. It has the potential to remove 10 million tCO₂e across more than 300 000ha, support more than 10 000 people, and provide habitat protection for more than 1 200 endemic species and critical megafauna.

Kenya: the Udongo Mzuri Biochar Carbon Project, led by Women in Climate Change & Renewable Energy, converts organic waste and invasive water hyacinth into biochar, with each ton sequestering three tCO₂e. With seven hubs planned over the next decade, the project targets approximately 20 000 tCO₂e per hub annually, linking production to 10 000 cookstoves per year while achieving a 20% increase in soil moisture retention.

Nigeria: the Ago Owu Forest Reserve Carbon Project in Osun aims to restore and protect 23 000 ha of degraded tropical high forest, creating more than 500 nursery jobs, formalising forest stewardship contracts for residents in the buffer zone, and sequestering carbon at scale through replanting and forest protection. The project is a collaboration between aDryada/Noblesse Green Energy, the Nigerian Presidency, and the National Council on Climate Change.

Source: farmersweekly.co.za

DEFENDING LAND AND ENVIRONMENTAL RIGHTS

Court Alert: Court Grants Bail to Jailed Defender and Wife.

Published

9 months ago

July 21, 2025

witnessradio.org

By Witness Radio team.

After a significant legal engagement, a magistrate court in Kiryandongo District has decided to release a community land rights defender and his wife on bail. This decision comes after they spent 40 days in prison.

Olupot James, a community land rights defender from Kikungulu village, Kibeeka Parish, Kapundo Sub-county, in Kiryandongo District, and his wife, Apio Sarah, were charged with malicious damage to property on June 5th, 2025, and were remanded to different prisons, including Dyang Prison.

The arrest of the defender and his wife has had a profound impact on their four children, leaving them in a state of grief and pain. They were left without parental care in a house surrounded by the sugar plantation.

According to the prosecution, the duo allegedly uprooted sugarcane plants belonging to Kiryandongo Sugar Limited and replaced them with maize on land neighboring the defender’s home. The multinational claims ownership of the land.

The Penal Code Act, Cap. Section 312 (1) of Uganda states that any person who willfully and unlawfully destroys or damages any property commits an offence and is liable on conviction to up to five years’ imprisonment.

Since 2017, Olupot and several other community land defenders have been in and out of prison, a testament to their unwavering resistance against illegal land evictions. Their resilience is a source of inspiration for many. Thousands of families claim they have lost their land to the multinational without following any law, without receiving any compensation, and without being offered an alternative settlement.

Through Witness Radio Legal Aid Chambers, the duo was granted a non-cash bail of two million Shillings, and their case has been fixed for hearing on July 28th, 2025.

The children, who have been enduring the absence of their parents, are now experiencing a sense of relief and joy as the family is reunited.

DEFENDING LAND AND ENVIRONMENTAL RIGHTS

A land rights defender and his wife have been arrested, charged, and sent to prison.

Published

9 months ago

July 16, 2025

witnessradio.org

By Witness Radio team.

Kiryandongo District – A community land rights Defender at Nyamutende Cell in Kiryandongo District, and his wife have been sent to prison by a magistrate’s court in Kiryandongo District, Witness Radio confirms.

Olupot James and his wife, Apio Sarah, were charged with malicious damage to property after a multinational company, Kiryandongo Sugar Limited, accused them of destroying its crops. The area police later picked them up.

Since 2017, Kiryandongo Sugar Limited, a subsidiary of Rai Holdings Private Limited, has been among the three multinationals that have forcibly displaced over thirty-five thousand (35,000) people in Kiryandongo District without following due diligence or offering alternative settlement options.

Community land Rights defender Olupot James and his wife Apio Sarah are amongst a few remaining families that resisted the company’s violent eviction and repression. Their home is currently trapped in the middle of the sugar plantation after they lost their land, which was dug up to the house by the multinational. Despite their peaceful resistance, Olupot has been arrested, charged, and imprisoned more than six times, a clear indication of the injustice they are facing.

Since late May this year, the duo has been reporting to Kiryandongo police station on Criminal Case Number CRB No. 316/2025, until they were arrested and aligned before the court and imprisoned. Olupot was remanded to Dyang while Apio is in Kiryandongo prison.

The state alleges that Olupot and Apio committed the offence of malicious damage to property in Kikungulu village, Kiryandongo District, a region with a complex history of land-related conflicts.

The Witness Radio’s legal aid team is monitoring the case and will appear in court to apply for their bail.