Panel Registers Request for Inspection of Uganda Infrastructure Project

The Inspection Panel on July 26, 2021, issued a Notice of Registration for a Request for Inspection of the Second Kampala Institutional and Infrastructure Development Project (KIIDP-2) in Uganda.

The Request was submitted on June 17, 2021, by Witness Radio Uganda, a not-for-profit and non-partisan registered advocacy organization for the protection and promotion of human rights in development, on behalf of 24 community members and representatives living in the project area. The Requesters have asked the Panel to keep their identities confidential and authorized Witness Radio Uganda to represent them during the Panel process. Accountability Counsel also supports this Request. The Panel has further received seven signatures of local council leaders supporting the Request. 

The Requesters raise concern about works on the Lubigi Primary Drainage Channel financed under KIIDP-2. They allege that some community members were evicted, and others were later part of a rushed, coercive and threatening resettlement process that did not follow due process. The Requesters also raise several concerns related to impact from the First Kampala Institutional and Infrastructure Development Project (KIIDP-1). According to the Requesters, community members had been informed that anything left unaddressed would be resolved under KIIDP-2, but they claim that this did not happen. 

The Panel’s registration implies no judgment whatsoever concerning the merits of a Request for Inspection. Bank management must provide the Panel with a response to the issues raised in the Request for Inspection by August, 24, 2021. After receiving the response and engaging with the relevant stakeholders, the Panel will make a recommendation to the Board of Executive Directors on whether the matter should be investigated. More