OIL REFINERY RESIDENTS ASSOCIATION-ORRA

ORRA is a women led community-based organization which started in 2012 as a pressure group to protect the rights of the refinery project affected persons especially women and youth. Later in 2014, we registered as a CBO by Hoima Local government to promote human rights of oil project affected persons and environment conservation amidst oil and gas developments in the Albertine region.

The organization was formed following a community outcry when government of Uganda through Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development acquired 29 sq. Km of land and displaced 7,118 people from 13 villages in Kabaale parish, Buseruka sub county. Since then, we have been at the forefront to promote the rights of oil project affected people through sharing our experience especially with women who in most cases are not fully engaged during the land acquisition processes like it was evidenced in our area in 2012.

Through lobby, research and community education, ORRA works with oil project directly affected communities, CSOs, cultural, religious and local government leaders to ensure that the rights of vulnerable communities are given a priority and protected amidst the oil and gas developments.

Program and ongoing activities

Climate resilience and adaptation

In 2006, Uganda discovered commercial oil reserves. The reserves are on shores of Lake Albert located in areas of social importance and critical biodiversity including land owned by vulnerable people, national parks, game reserves, forests, wetlands, lakes, rivers, sacred natural sites and territories and many others. In light of the above, ORRA intends to mobilize women and youth to enhance their resilience and adaptive capacity to climate change. We are also engaging women in restoration of degraded wetlands and forest in our area amidst oil and gas exploitation activities.

Land rights and gender equity

Lack of women participation in decision making and access to and control over resources. Women constitute over 70% of agricultural labor force and yet, despite their enormous contributions, most of them neither enjoy the proceeds of their labor nor do majority of them own productive resources such as land

Environment and extractives

In a bid to curb down the likely negative effects of the oil refinery and responding to the climate change, ORRA in partnership with AFIEGO have since 2015 mobilizing and sensitizing communities around the proposed refinery to plant trees and especially fruit trees because we believe they have broader leaves which can help in absorption of toxic fumes from the industry

Upcoming events