On Nov. 26, the East African Court of Justice (EACJ) dismissed an appeal filed by four African NGOs, marking the end of a landmark case against the construction of a contentious oil pipeline. The case against the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP), expected to become the longest heated crude oil pipeline in the world, was first filed in 2020. “It was a very huge disappointment, especially as we ran to court and thought that at least we would find justice in the courts of law,” Balach Bakundane, an affected community representative for the Uganda-based EACOP Host Communities organization, told Mongabay by phone. The 1,443-kilometer (897-mile) EACOP runs from oil fields in Uganda to the Port of Tanga in Tanzania. The pipeline is being constructed by the French oil giant TotalEnergies and involves state-owned companies from China, Uganda and Tanzania. Its route runs through more than 40 protected areas and areas near Lake Albert and Lake Victoria, which are some of Africa’s most important freshwater sources. The project’s carbon footprint is estimated at about 34 million tons of CO₂ per year, considerably more than what Uganda and Tanzania emit annually. The NGOs in their case argued that the construction of EACOP had started without adequate environmental and social impact assessments or public participation, harming both local communities and ecosystems.

After the first set of hearings, the EACJ in November 2023, dismissed the case based on a technicality, agreeing with the governments of Tanzania and Uganda that the NGOs hadn’t filed their complaint within 60 days of the 2017 agreements. The NGOs say they learned about the project’s details much later in 2020. The NGOs filed an appeal with the court, arguing for the case to be heard on merit. However, in its latest ruling, the court upheld its previous decision, dismissing the appeal and thereby the case. “Land has been taken, livelihoods shattered and people intimidated or arrested for speaking out — yet none of that will even be heard in this courtroom,” Justin Semuyaba, a lawyer representing the NGOs, said in a statement. Bakundane told Mongabay the judges never took into consideration the damage caused by EACOP. “They have been excavating everywhere, and the floods that are running from these cuttings are destroying our farmlands, destroying our water bodies.” He added that he is being pressured by the authorities and summoned by the police because of his opposition to the project. “Of course, their only interest is that we stop what we are doing, we stop mobilizing ourselves to challenge these injustices,” he said.

Despite this setback, Bakundane said they are looking at alternatives to continue challenging this project. “We want to build a very strong resistance within our communities. And we are not alone; other communities along Lake Albert have also filed complaints. We are not going to give up.”