Deal #3017 Version #91764

None of the community members knew they had lost their homes and livelihoods.

The community originally rejected the project, thus the project was cancelled in 2012, however the company undertook 15 months of community dispute resolution until 2013, when the company re-started operations.

At least 22,500 Ugandans were forced from their homes to make way for a British timber company, the aid agency Oxfam said in a report. Removal of the former residents, which took place by February 2010 in Mubende and between 2006 and July 2010 in Kiboga. The company states the evictions were carried out by the government and were not violent. The government states that the community were living in the area illegally.

The Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO), the independent accountability mechanism for the IFC, was involved in the establishment of a mediated agreement between the Mubende community and the company. The agreement commits the company to work closely with the community, while the community has agreed to respect NFC’s legal rights to the land and activities on the land. The agreement has been implemented since July 2013. An agreement is still to be established between the company and the community members in Kiboga District. The Mubende community has established a cooperative (Mubende Bukakikama Cooperative Society) which will receive financial and other support from NFC. The cooperative had bought 202 hectares, with 160 hectares for agriculture (vegetables, beans and potatoes) and the remaining land for housing. The cooperative has received training from the Uganda Cooperative Alliance and supported by Oxfam.

A joint development forum facilitates the identification of development projects for implementation by the company and the Mubende community. Development projects identified include access to water by the community and income generation projects. The company states that it will build schools and clinics as part of its community development program. The company supports community bee-keeping projects. Main development impact:Employment,Climate impacts, community programs and Development of sustainable forest industry and market