The rights group also said the project, which is Total Energy TTEF.PA It has a 62% stake, which is a disaster for the planet because it will add emissions that will exacerbate climate change.
French company TotalEnergies rIt rejected Human Rights Watch’s accusations, saying it respects all rights of affected people.
The East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) is slated to cost $3.5 billion and will carry crude oil from oil fields in western Uganda through Tanzania to the port of Tanga on the Indian Ocean, with a length of 1,445 kilometres.
Initial ground work began earlier this year and the pipeline is scheduled for completion in 2025.
Human Rights Watch said in a statement that those displaced by the pipeline did not receive adequate compensation and delays of several years in obtaining such compensation.
“EACOP has been a disaster for the tens of thousands who have lost land that provided food for their families and an income to send their children to school, and for whom they received very little compensation from TotalEnergies.”
Human Rights Watch said it conducted more than 90 interviews earlier this year, including 75 displaced families in five districts in Uganda.
a tA spokesperson for otalEnergies told Reuters that the company and its partners are committed to addressing the rights of those affected as well as the environmental and biodiversity impact of the project.
“We are doing our best to ensure that (EACOP) is a model in terms of transparency, shared prosperity, and economic and social progress,” the spokesperson said, adding that those affected have been relocated to nearby areas and will see better living conditions.
He said that almost all those affected by the project have been compensated.
EACOP has already done so drawn Criticism from clean energy advocates and other rights groups say the project has caused mass displacement and will destroy many environmentally sensitive areas along its path in both countries.
These organizations have urged lenders around the world not to help finance the project and some banks I pledged not to participate in its financing.
Human Rights Watch added that the process of acquiring land for the project had “caused thousands of Ugandan farmers severe financial hardship, including heavy household debt”.
Posted by Elias Priyaparima
(Reporting by Silvia Aloisi in Paris; Editing by Bhargav Acharya and Sharon Singleton)