By Doreen Asasira
OPINION
As oil development accelerates across Uganda under projects like the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP), a troubling reality is emerging from the ground where communities are paying the price for progress they were promised would improve their lives.
From Bunyoro to Greater Masaka, the experiences of Project Affected Persons (PAPs) tell a different story, one of environmental disruption, shrinking livelihoods and growing fear.
In districts like Kakumiro and Hoima, the burial of the pipeline has brought unintended but severe consequences. Natural water flows have been blocked, leading to flooding of gardens, destruction of crops, and contamination of wetlands. For communities that depend on subsistence farming, this is not a minor inconvenience it is a direct threat to survival. Yet despite repeated complaints, many report silence from those responsible.
In Lwengo and Kyotera, the situation is equally concerning. Water sources have been contaminated, changing in color and quality, leaving families without safe drinking water. At the same time, heavy construction trucks have destroyed roads, increased dust and noise pollution, and created safety risks. When it rains, runoff from exposed pipeline routes floods homes and gardens. When it is dry, dust fills the air triggering persistent coughs and respiratory illness.
This raises a fundamental question: how can a development project compromise the very essentials of life water, food, and health and still be considered progress?
Even where mitigation efforts exist, they are often inadequate. In Hoima, a restored spring has already begun to crack, with unclear water quality raising doubts about sustainability. In Kyakaboga, concerns are growing over access to water as systems are handed over for management, potentially turning a basic human necessity into a paid service that excludes the most vulnerable.
Meanwhile, in Buliisa, the impacts stretch beyond human communities. Oil activities in conservation areas are disrupting wildlife, pushing elephants into farmlands where they destroy crops and worsen food insecurity. Tourism, a key economic sector, is also at risk as wildlife retreats deeper into hiding.
Perhaps most alarming is the climate of fear and intimidation reported in several areas. Community members and observers are increasingly afraid to document damage or demand fair compensation. When citizens cannot speak freely about issues affecting their land, livelihoods, and environment, accountability is lost.
And yet, amidst these challenges, communities are not giving up. Across affected regions, people are organizing themselves into groups, planting trees, adopting clean energy solutions, and raising their voices through advocacy. They are not resisting development, they are demanding fairness, transparency, and respect.
Their demands are reasonable and urgent:
Restore and protect water sources, Ensure fair, timely, and adequate compensation, Rehabilitate damaged roads and farmlands, Provide accessible social services like schools and health facilities, Respect environmental safeguards and community rights.
However local efforts alone are not enough. This is where the international community must step in. Financial institutions, insurers, and development partners backing EACOP cannot continue to ignore the mounting evidence of harm. Governments and global watchdogs must demand transparency, enforce environmental and human rights standards, and hold corporations accountable for violations.
Oil development must not be a trade-off where national gain comes at the expense of local suffering. True development is inclusive, it uplifts communities, protects ecosystems, and ensures that no one is left worse off.
Uganda stands at a critical moment. The choices made today will shape not only the success of its oil ambitions but also the well-being of its people and environment for generations to come.
The voices from Bunyoro and Greater Masaka are clear: development must be accountable, or it risks losing its legitimacy.
Clean water is not negotiable. Human dignity is not expendable. And development that destroys the very communities it claims to uplift is not development but rather it is exploitation.
The story emerging from Uganda’s oil regions is not just a local issue; it is a global test of whether the world will prioritize profit over people, or stand firmly for justice, sustainability and human rights. The time to act is now.
