Info- sheet. 2014

THE DYNAMICS OF CONFLICTS RELATED TO LAND AND NATURAL
RESOURCES IN RUPA SUB-COUNTY, KARAMOJA REGION, UGANDA
Summary to Key stakeholders
The Karamoja Region a home to about 1.147 million people, 80% of the total population
is estimated to be living below the poverty line (UNDP, Human Development Report
Uganda, 2007) relative to the national average of 31% making this region the poorest part
of Uganda yet it holds over 50 different economic minerals, including gold, silver, copper,
iron, gemstones, limestone and marble. After decades of inter-clan and inter-tribal cattle
rustlingpartlyusheredinbyadecadeofdisarmament,many Karimojongandnon-Karimojong
see a period of peace, at least in relative terms. However, this peace is fraught with another
challenge, the increasing quest for land by internal and external actors. Many say it is
“the peace” that has given ground to land conflicts1 . The recent disarmament process in
Karamoja has significantly reduced gun possession, restored relative peace and spurred
economic recovery in some parts of the sub-region
2
. The return to security has opened
the door for many corporations to poke their noses into Uganda’s mineral-rich lands. The
natives, politicians and opinion leaders in the area warn that serious conflict might
emanate from the scramble for resources. Communities describe land disputes as
widespread in Karamoja, with acquisition of land in the sub-region for the purpose of
establishing game reserves or to commercially exploit minerals such as gold or uranium
pitching residents against the UWA, local government and commercial investors3
. Con-
flicts are also prevalent between investors, title holders and the communities and in com-
munal land between individuals, sometimes referred to as the elite (educated/prominent
Karimojong) and the communities4
.
Land and Extractive Mineral Sector in Karamoja
The Karamoja region is believed to have Uganda’s largest deposits
of valuable minerals such as gold and limestone and has the potential
to become the “next frontier of mineral exploitation after oil in the
Albertine region. According to January, 2014 statistics from the
DGSM, 17,083.34sq.km (61.67%) of the 27,700 sq. km total land area
of Karamoja region is licensed for mineral exploration and exploitation
activities. The same data indicates that Moroto district has 26 compa-
nies with 44 concessions (5LL, 3ML & 1SML) covering a total land
area of 3772,43sq.km (Table 2). By comparison,
INTRODUCTION
regional data indicates that the total land area licensed for mineral
exploration and exploitation activities is 61.67% of the total land area in
Karamoja wherein 11.22% (1917.5sq. km) of this land area lies in Rupa
Sub-county5
. There are currently 10 Mining companies with 22 mineral
concessions (1 ML, 2 LL and 9 EL) in Rupa only (Table 1). However, the
natives, politicians and opinion leaders in the area warn that serious con-
flict might emanate from the scramble for resources. Local people say that
it is not clear how investors come to invest, especially those who are clear-
ing whole mountainsides or fencing large areas. There are companies from
India and the Gulf, as well as contractors from other parts of Uganda.6
Patterns of NRM related Conflicts
Discussions with communities in Rupa revealed that they are
confronted by different types of NRM related conflicts which are
either inter or intra (micro–micro) or micro–macro levels but all relating
to the spheres in which the community find themselves interacting with
other groups, individuals, communities, state or corporate actors on issues
related to land and mineral resources and these included:7
• Disputes over land and resource ownership, e.g. between investors,
mining companies, lease holders and the communities and in
communal land between individual elites or educated/prominent
Karimojong and the communities
• Disputes over land boundaries between individuals or groups
• Conflicts between herders and cultivators (changing Karimojong
economy-conflicts between pastoralist and agro-pastoralist approaches)
• Disputes ignited by the speculation activities of commercial companies-
Mineral exploration.
• Conflict between mining private companies and communal land
resource users
With funding and support
from the European Union's
Instrument for Stability
The United Nations
Interagency Framework Team
for Preventive Action
EU – UN Partnership on Land, Natural Resources and Conflict Prevention
1
Civil Peace Service Programme, ‘Assessment of land related conflicts and current interventions in Karamoja’, December 2013
2
Saferworld, ‘Karamoja Conflict and Security Assessment’, September 2010
3
Advisory Consortium on Conflict Sensitivity (ACCS), ‘Nothern Uganda Conflict Analysis’, September 2013
4
Civil Peace Service Programme, ‘Assessment of land related conflicts and current interventions in Karamoja’, December 2013
5
This was computed from the data provided by DGSM on Mineral Concession Holders as of 31st January 2014.
6
Karamoja Action Research Team, Patta Scott-Villiers, “Eki and Etem in Karamoja: A study of decision-making in a post-conflict society”. 2013
7
This is a generalized and summarized responses from all interviews conducted by the research team. They are further discussed in next section-Drivers of conflict related to Natural Resources Management
Table 2: Exploration and Mining License Holders in Moroto District as of January 31st, 2014
Type # Licence Holder Location Granting
Date
Expiry
Date
Sheet # District Commodity
/Mineral
Area/
Km2
Mineral rent per
year (UGX)
EL 0319 Moroto Cement Industries
(U) Limited
Kampala 5/6/08 5/5/15 27/1 Moroto Marble, Limestone 62.50 1,260,000
EL 0425 AVR Engineering &
Infrastructure Limited
Kampala 2/20/09 2/19/14 36/1 Moroto Iron & Basemetals 10.00 200,000
EL 0426 AVR Engineering &
Infrastructure Limited
Kampala 2/20/09 2/19/14 27/3 Moroto Gold & Basemetals 2.00 40,000
EL 0735 Great Lakes Cement
Limited
Jinja 3/25/11 3/24/14 27/3. Moroto Limestone & Marble 11.00 220,000
EL 0751 Jinja Marble Products (U)
Limited
Jinja 4/11/11 4/10/14 27/3. Moroto Marble 56.50 1,140,000
EL 0851 East African Mining Limited Kampala 9/22/11 9/21/14 27/1. Moroto Gold, PGEs and
Base Metals
72.00 1,440,000
EL 0852 East African Mining Limited Kampala 9/22/11 9/21/14 27/1. Moroto Gold, PGEs and
Base Metals
86.00 1,720,000
EL 0876 Pramukh Steel Limited Jinja 10/20/11 10/19/14 27/3. Moroto Limestone/Marbles 36.90 740,000
EL 0977 Kripto International Limited. Kampala 4/24/12 4/23/15 36/1 Moroto Gold, PGM, Uranium
& Base Metals
10.00 200,000
EL 0978 Kripto International Limited. Kampala 4/24/12 4/23/15 27/3. Moroto Gold, PGM, Uranium
& Base Metals
2.00 40,000
EL 0995 Ndovu Investments Ltd Jinja 7/3/12 7/2/15 36/2. Moroto Marble & Gypsum 7.00 140,000
EL 0996 Ndovu Investments Ltd Jinja 7/3/12 7/2/15 36/2&4. Moroto Marble & Gypsum 308.60 6,180,000
EL 1001 Jan Mangal (U) Ltd Kampala 7/20/12 7/19/15 27/3&4. Moroto Gold & Base Metals 74.20 1,500,000
EL 1016 Great Lakes Mining Ltd Kampala 8/10/12 8/9/15 18A/3. Moroto REE & Base Metals 55.00 1,100,000
EL 1071 Angaro Investment
Company Ltd
Moroto 2/18/13 2/17/16 36/3 &
45/1
Moroto Gold and Base
Metals
102.00 2,040,000
EL 1079 Blackstone Ichiban Ltd Kampala 2/5/13 2/4/16 36/1 - 4 Moroto Gold and Base
Metals
411.00 8,220,000
EL 1080 Blackstone Ichiban Ltd Kampala 2/5/13 2/4/16 27/3,4,
36/1& 2
Moroto Gold and Base
Metals
212.50 4,260,000
EL 1081 Rhino United Agencies Ltd Moroto 2/18/13 2/17/16 36/1 - 3 Moroto Gold and Base
Metals
97.00 1,940,000
EL 1083 Infinity Minerals Ltd Kampala 2/11/13 2/10/16 27/3&4 Moroto Gold and Base
Metals
437.00 8,740,000
EL 1090 Dao Africa Limited Kampala 2/20/13 2/19/16 27/1 Moroto Limestone and
Marble
40.70 820,000
EL 1091 Emmanuel Kyoyeta Makaga Kampala 2/20/13 2/19/16 27/3 Moroto Gold, Base Metals,
Limestone and
Marble
40.00 800,000
EL 1100 Earth Cement (U) Limited Kampala 2/22/13 2/21/16 27/3 Moroto Limestone 50.00 1,000,000
EL 1101 Earth Cement (U) Limited Kampala 2/22/13 2/21/16 36/2 Moroto Limestone 51.00 1,020,000
EL 1115 Infinity Minerals Ltd Kampala 3/22/13 3/21/16 26/2&18/
4
Moroto &
Kaabong
Gold and Base
Metals
480.00 9,600,000
EL 1126 MCB Resources Limited Kampala 4/9/13 4/8/16 27/1 Moroto Gold and Base
Metals
19.84 400,000
EL 1157 Clear Water Mining Limited Kampala 5/28/13 5/27/16 26/1&3 Moroto Gold and Base
Metals
272.00 5,440,000
EL 1161 Clear Water Mining Limited Kampala 5/30/13 5/29/16 27/1 Moroto Gold and Base
Metals
131.24 2,640,000
EL 1164 Sikander Meghani Kampala 6/4/13 6/3/16 27/3 Moroto Gold and Base
Metals
2.00 40,000
EL 1165 Dao Marble Limited Kampala 6/13/13 6/12/16 27/3 Moroto Limestone, Chromite,
Gold & PGMs
124.23 2,500,000
EL 1172 Clear Water Mining Limited Kampala 7/4/13 7/3/16 26/1&2 Moroto Gold, Base Metal 224.00 4,480,000
EL 1175 Kiboko Cement Industries
Limited
Kampala 7/5/13 7/4/16 27/1&2 Moroto Limestone, Marble 41.44 840,000
EL 1206 Aljouda Mining Company
Limited
Kampala 10/14/13 10/13/16 27/3 Moroto Limestone, Gold &
Base Metals
13.64 280,000
EL 1207 Aljouda Mining Company
Limited
Base Metals
15.00 320,000
EL 1239 Clear Water Mining Limited Kampala 11/18/13 11/17/16 36/1 Moroto Gold and Base
Metals
7.00 140,000
LL 1171 Jinja Marble Products (U)
Limited
Jinja 6/24/13 6/23/15 27/3 Moroto Marble 0.16 250,000
LL 1210 Sikander Meghani Kampala 10/17/13 10/16/15 27/3 Moroto Gold 0.11 250,000
LL 1260 Lokwang Peter Moroto 12/10/13 12/9/15 27/3 Moroto Limestone and
Marble
0.08 250,000
LL 1261 Lokwang Peter Moroto 12/10/13 12/9/15 27/3 Moroto Limestone and
Marble
0.08 250,000
ML 0593 Tororo Cement Limited Tororo 4/16/10 4/15/31 36/2 Moroto Limestone 49.77 99,540,000
ML 1129 Jan Mangal (U) Ltd Kampala 4/18/13 4/17/34 27/3&4 Moroto Gold 74.20 148,400,000
ML 1230 Moroto Cement Industries
(U) Limited
1/17/14 1/16/17 27/1 Moroto Marble, Limestone 62.57 125,160,000
SML 4622 Tororo Cement Limited Tororo 12/20/02 12/19/23 36/2 Moroto Limestone 20.01 40,020,000
Source: Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development, MEMD), Department of Geological Survey and Mines, DGSM), January, 2014
To obtain a copy of
the full published
report, please
contact:
Ecological Christian Organization (ECO)
Plot 2140, Old Kira road, P.O. Box 34485, Kampala-Uganda
Tel: 0464-660273 / 0414-535212, Email: eco@ecouganda.org
Website: www.ecouganda.org

A Land and minerals were reported by the as the key drivers of conflict
in Rupa. The conflicts are common between the investors and communi-
ties where mining and prospecting are taking place sometimes driven by
speculation and rumours over unclear land acquisition by the investors and
how politicians made a kill in the mining or prospecting deals, unfulfilled
promises by investors in terms of royalties and compensation, investors
ignoring of surface rights regarding communal land, royalties and utilising
wrong channels of communities to enter communities to do a start-up of
their activities.
A The sale and lease of communal land to private investors in Rupa is
also on the rise, and increasingly fuelling conflicts amongst community
members and between communities and local government officials and
investors.
A Land and boundary disputes/ contested boundaries between
communities and between mining companies holding different concessions
due unclear demarcation of the areas of jurisdiction for their activities.
A There exists conflict between the communities and government and
their agencies like Uganda Wildlife Authority and National Forestry Au-
thority in some areas citing Lotithan and Kobebe cases.
Mineral related conflicts
A Rupa sub-county boasts large deposits of valuable stones and
minerals like gold, limestone, copper, tantalum, tin and phosphate.
While most of these valuable minerals remain underexploited, the
potential wealth derived from extracting minerals has already sparked
tensions.
A Community members reported insufficient consultation and
participation of local communities in the process of exploration and
exploitation of resources found in their land is creating resentment and
driving conflicts across the area.
A There conflicts between small scale miners themselves-driven mainly
by jealous and need for access to perceived areas of better mining
results, sharing of proceeds, alcoholism and other causes. Small
scale miners and the investors (mining companies or mining licence
holders) which are driven by need for control of the mining activities,
land, unclear terms of operation, the perception that investors came to
know of the minerals before the local people and what underlies it as
one FGD a respondent noted with concern.
A Prices of gold whereby a few monopolies/buyers over bargain the
price of gold to meet their interest thus exploiting the local miners.
A Attributed these conflicts to have been mainly the responsibility of
governments, local leaders, Uganda Wild Life Authority, Forestry
department for their failure to come out clear and engage in
discussions with the local people about issues of demarcation, gazett-
ing, degazzeting, access and compensation, concessions, royalties and
other information related to land and mineral issues.
A The local government insists that sometimes they are blamed with
no clear basis and attributes some conflicts to the general lack of
public awareness about the exact location and abundance of valuable
resources leading to speculation and rumours, while private
investors’exploration activities, though often well within the bounds of
the law, are perceived with suspicion by local communities and lead to
conflicts.
A The increasing population in the mining sites and people struggling for
mining holes, the exploitation of minerals and land use was reported to
be a major cause of conflict in this area.
A Reports of licences being awarded to companies away from
public scrutiny and of companies operating fraudulently with expired
exploration licences and failing to comply with their obligations
towards the local community are fuelling resentment.
A Lack of transparency and public information about such
transactions, fuels anger amongst communities. Unclear property
rights and restricted communication as well as lack of representa-
tion, consideration and protection for traditional resource users (e.g.
pastoralists and smallscale and artisanal miners), are common cause of
conflict.
A Communities expressed high expectations that mining companies
would create jobs and invest in community development, though
often the opposite has been the case, with the authorities and private
investors expelling goldsmiths from the mines, a crucial source of
livelihoods for local communities.
A Some general causes of conflict included rustling; arms trafficking,
background of colonisation that involved sharing border lands with
Kenya and South Sudan; tax and royalty revenues issues and, poverty.
Critical Issues in NRM Conflict Mitigation and
Management
Assessment of the dynamics of conflicts related to land and natural
resources in Rupa Sub-county elicits a number of critical needs and
issues. These primarily relate to: (i) the interface between UWA, NFA and
local community over access to land, minerals and other natural resources;
(ii) capacity of the actors to deal especially with the emerging mineral
related conflicts; (iii) core governance issues including those related to
transparency, accountability and benefit sharing; (iv) Traditional Natural
Resources Management Structures like the Etem/Ekokwa (men’s gathering/
meeting/ tree of men) and Akiriket (Sacred Assembly) need to be
supported, (v) popularisation of Land and Mineral policies; (vi)
consultation and participation of local communities in the process of
exploration and exploitation of resources; (vii) Effective Information
Flows and Communication Channels; (viii) Security of Land Tenure
and; (ix) Co-existence of Artisanal and Small-scale Miners (ASM) and
Medium and Large Scale Mining. Responsiveness to these issues will likely
determine whether Karamoja’s land and mineral endowments can
be used as a platform for peace, stability and development while
inaction poses the risk of further undermining the mitigation and response
mechanisms directed towards prevention of land and mineral resources
from contributing to violent conflict in Rupa and the entire Karamoja.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
A There is need for widespread sensitization on mining and land legisla-
tion, as well as the peculiarities of the minerals sector, would help mitigate
such risks, indicating a critical role for local government.
A There is need to strengthen the capacity of actors especially to deal
with the emerging mineral related conflicts. The need for harmonized and
well coordinated NRM conflict-resolution approaches and tools should be
created. There is also need to support efforts directed toward streng
thening the statutory land administration and increases knowledge access
of the land and mineral laws to the NGOs CBOs, district technical staff
and local people.
A There is need to reconcile and harmonize the mining and land legisla-
tions as they apply within the context of Karamoja is urgently needed as is
local capacity to engage in reform processes.
A In cases where exploration companies are active, geologists must
(for their own security) necessarily engage and sensitize land owners as
they enter areas (e.g. for sample collection), typically through government
channels (LCIII or LCI Chairpersons) and to a lesser extent clan chiefs
and elders.
A There is need for increased collaboration between civil society and
other actors like Local and Central government in addressing the conflict
issues in Karamoja. This should avail communities with necessary infor-
mation from all actors so as to safeguard them from the negative effects
of development.
A Traditional systems like the Etem and Akiririkit need to be supported
There is need to support or contribute to formalization and improvements
to ASM including building functioning effective local and regional ASM
associations.
A Building upon and Coordinating with Existing Initiatives and other
partners. A significant number of initiatives related to peace and security,
land, mining, livelihoods, environmental protection and community health,
among other critical issues.
Table 1: Exploration and Mining License Holders in Rupa Sub-county as of January 31st, 2014
• Conflicts among the small scale miners themselves-driven mainly by jealous and need for access to perceived areas of better mining results, sharing
of proceeds, alcoholism and other causes. Small scale miners and the investors8
which are driven by need for control of the mining activities, land,
unclear terms of operation, the perception that investors came to know of the minerals before the local people.
• Boundary disputes over access to resources
• Contradictory natural resource needs and values, e.g. between wildlife habitat protection and local livelihood security/UWA-gazetted reserve and
reduction in access to grazing land and farming opportunities (Land conflicts are evident in areas gazetted as reserves by the Uganda Wildlife
Authority-UWA)
Type Numb
er
Licence holder Location Granting
date
Expiry
date
Sheet
number
District Commodity / mineral Area/
km2
mineral rent
per year
(ugx)
EL 0803 Gold Hunters Limited Kampala 7/25/11 7/24/14 18/3&4. Kaabong Gold and Base Metals 48.00 960,000
EL 0804 Gold Hunters Limited Kampala 7/25/11 7/24/14 26/2 & 27/1. Kaabong Gold and Base Metals 54.00 1,080,000
EL 0807 Gold Hunters Limited Kampala 7/25/11 7/24/14 18/3&4. Kaabong Gold and Base Metals 48.00 960,000
EL 0809 Gold Hunters Limited Kampala 7/25/11 7/24/14 26/2. Kaabong Gold and Base Metals 54.00 1,080,000
EL 0851 East African Mining
Limited
Kampala 9/22/11 9/21/14 27/1. Moroto Gold, PGEs and Base
Metals
72.00 1,440,000
EL 0852 East African Mining
Limited
Kampala 9/22/11 9/21/14 27/1. Moroto Gold, PGEs and Base
Metals
86.00 1,720,000
EL 0876 Pramukh Steel Limited Jinja 10/20/11 10/19/14 27/3. Moroto Limestone/Marbles 36.90 740,000
EL 1001 Jan Mangal (U) Ltd Kampala 7/20/12 7/19/15 27/3&4. Moroto Gold & Base Metals 74.20 1,500,000
EL 1016 Great Lakes Mining
Ltd
Kampala 8/10/12 8/9/15 18A/3. Moroto REE & Base Metals 55.00 1,100,000
EL 1083 Infinity Minerals Ltd Kampala 2/11/13 2/10/16 27/3&4 Moroto Gold and Base Metals 437.00 8,740,000
EL 1090 Dao Africa Limited Kampala 2/20/13 2/19/16 27/1 Moroto Limestone and Marble 40.70 820,000
EL 1115 Infinity Minerals Ltd Kampala 3/22/13 3/21/16 26/2&18/4 Moroto &
Kaabong
Gold and Base Metals 480.00 9,600,000
EL 1164 Sikander Meghani Kampala 6/4/13 6/3/16 27/3 Moroto Gold and Base Metals 2.00 40,000
EL 1165 Dao Marble Limited Kampala 6/13/13 6/12/16 27/3 Moroto Limestone, Chromite,
Gold & PGMs
124.23 2,500,000
EL 1207 Aljouda Mining
Company Limited
Base Metals
15.00 320,000
LL 1171 Jinja Marble Products
(U) Limited
Jinja 6/24/13 6/23/15 27/3 Moroto Marble 0.16 250,000
ML 1129 Jan Mangal (U) Ltd Kampala 4/18/13 4/17/34 27/3&4 Moroto Gold 74.20 148,400,000
Drivers of conflict related to Natural Resources Management in Rupa:
8
Investors imply mining companies and individuals who are either mining or prospecting
Land related conflicts

Info- sheet. 2014

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