Deal #4603 Version #68616

Some villagers claim that they were not consulted.

Some villagers reject the project. The communities addressed the petition to the administrative authorities with the help of a local organisation and an international civil society network against the expansion of monocultures, particularly oil palm.

Communities had lost a large part of their land, about 18,000 hectares, so they demanded, through a petition supported by other national and international organisations in September 2019.

The communities feel alienated in their own territories as Olam has been asking for several years that people get a permit issued by the company in order to enter the concessions. Many villagers complain that they still do not have this permit and therefore cannot access their own territory and those who do obtain a permit complain that they can no longer continue their activities on their territory during Olam's working hours (between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.), including not being able to fish in the few remaining lakes. Other negative impacts mentioned by African peoples Tribunal:- - The destruction of areas where villagers used to harvest foodstuffs such as fruits and medicinal plants; - A profound ecological imbalance, including the fragmentation of wildlife habitats and the destruction of water points; this has created a huge problem with elephants and other animals regularly roaming the communities in search of food; villagers have also observed a significant increase in the population of flies, as well as other insects and reptiles, including snakes; - The destruction of fertile fields for food production in forests and savannahs that are now covered with monoculture oil palm; - The use of chemicals, fertilisers and pesticides on plantations, which contaminate the region's soils, rivers and lakes; - The water needs of the plantations - this situation has been aggravated by the irrigation program planned by Olam to ensure year-round water availability for the plantation areas, exposing the communities to an even greater risk of water scarcity.

Participants will receive public healthcare coverage, access to low-interest loans

The communities of Nanga and Ferra villages launched a petition in September 2019 in which they asked Sotrader/Olam to stop planting on a part of the concession still undeveloped because of the negative consequences already observed on the planted areas. A march was organised in the commune of Ndendé and the petition was officially handed over to the prefect of the locality where Sotrader has its headquarters in the province. This petition was launched with the support of the NGO Muyissi Environnement and the International Alliance on Monocultures supported by organisations such as GRAIN, WRM, RADD and SEFE. Rainforest Rescue also launched the petition at the international level.