SAVE VIRUNGA
Stop Oil Exploration in Africa's Oldest National Park
Understanding the impact of a low carbon transition on Uganda’s planned oil industry Matthew Huxham, Muhammed Anwar, Eoin Strutt and David Nelson In late 2020, the governments of Uganda and Tanzania inked key agreements with a consortium of international oil companies and in so doing, injected momentum into a planned oil industry in Uganda. Nearly… Read More
Drillers in the Mist: how secret payments and a climate of violence helped SOCO International open Africa’s oldest national park to oil. This emblematic case highlights how secret payments and a climate of violence in Eastern DRC helped SOCO International open Virunga National park, a UNESCO World heritage site, to oil exploration with financial support… Read More
“L’écologie est le flux. Vous et moi faisons définitivement partie du flux. Tout ce que nous faisons affecte le flux. Tout ce que le flux fait nous affecte. “ Robert Hunter La semaine dernière BBC, Bloomberg et beaucoup d’autres ont rapporté les nouvelles horribles que la République Démocratique du Congo envisageait «d’ouvrir des espaces de deux… Read More
“Ecology is flow. You and I are most definitely part of the flow. Everything we do affects the flow. Everything the flow does affects us.” Robert Hunter Last week BBC, Bloomberg and many others reported the horrifying news that the Democratic Republic of Congo was considering “whether to open up swathes of two world-famous national… Read More
Virunga National Park is under threat and witnessing an increase in attacks and misinformation around its development projects in North Kivu. Everything started a few months ago with recurrent militia attacks in and around the construction site of its third Hydropower plant of 12,8 MW close to Lubero. Making it very difficult for the park… Read More
This month’s article in Africa Intelligence “Virunga a hot issue” reveals that it won’t be until November 2014 that the findings of the second phase of the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA), funded by the European Union, will be handed out to the Ministry of Hydrocarbon in DR-Congo. The SEA will be used to inform DRC Government… Read More
Virunga: The real price of energy August 2, 2013 – Author: Hughes Belin . In 2010, the Congolese Government of Kinshasa granted concessions to European companies to exploit oil near the border with Uganda. Exploration is only starting now in a context of civil war. But the area includes one of the world’s most exceptional… Read More
Virunga National Park Virunga National Park is a 7800 square kilometer UNESCO World Heritage Site that lies on the eastern border of the Democratic Republic of Congo. It is the is the second oldest national park in the world and the oldest in Africa, established in 1925. It is the most diverse national park on… Read More
A murky deal for the Congo as oil exploration threatens corruption and environmental damage – and London-based Soco International is first in the queue . Weeks after putting down a rebellion, the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo is preparing new oil laws that could open it up to vast corruption and put its… Read More
Kinshasa, DRC – On the 7th of November, Serge Lescaut, SOCO’s Central Africa director announced that the UK Oil company will be waiting for the results of the Strategic Environmental Assessment commissioned by the DRC government and supported by the EU. The company official says to have the full support of DRC government and will… Read More
The links between biodiversity and poverty Poor people, especially those living in areas with low agricultural productivity, depend heavily and directly on genetic, species and ecosystem biodiversity to support their livelihoods. This support takes the shape of contributions to health and nutrition, reduced vulnerability, crop and stock development, and off-farm resource use. However, their livelihood… Read More
The DRC government gave SOCO International Plc, the oil company with the biggest participating interest in the oil blocks covering Virunga National Park, permission to assess and valuate the oil reserves in this Unesco World Heritage site in danger. The information provided by SOCO International will be used as part of the Strategic Environmental Assessment… Read More
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