Equal Earth Experience Project

“But at present most challenging is the hunger. (…) Every morning, starving members from Twa communities come to us and cry - asking for food. But we cannot do anything without adequate funding and aid.” – Ahimbisibwe Alex (BIDO)

 

The Batwa, a in Uganda, Burundi, Ruanda and the democratic republic of Kongo living ethnical group are next to the San the oldest still living people on earth. As hunters and gatherers, they have lived for generations in and of the forests of central- Africa without destroying the local ecosystems. They play a key role in the conservation of biodiversity.

But this is not possible anymore.

“We once lived and sustained our lives in the forests until the government evicted us for agriculture businesses, logging, development projects, and the creation of conservation areas. Without respect for our rights to ancestral lands, no compensation, no clear relocation plans or designated lands, we are left with no sustainable option to survive.” – Ahimbisibwe Alex (BIDO)

Since 1991 the in Uganda living Batwa are banished from their forest territories. They were deprived of their livelihood- the forest- without their consent. During the last 30 years the Batwa could only survive through begging and sporadic permissions to enter the forest on some days. Because of this situation their cultural knowledge is systematically erased and as an ethnical minority they have lost the protection the forest once gave them from violent and sexual assaults.

Because of the Covid- 19 pandemic the situation of the in Uganda living Batwa deteriorated dramatically. Now they are denied all access to the forest and are fully dependent on begging. The money is not enough to cover basic food supplies and certainly not enough to pay for necessary medical goods.

This is why we ask for your financial support. Since 2020 we have been working together with the Ugandan Batwa organisation BIDO on a project that wants to promote the right of Batwa for co-decision in the Ugandan government and the Ugandan Wildlife Authority, the agency that is managing the natural reserves in Uganda.

But before we can dedicate ourselves to this common project, the Batwa have to be provided with enough food supplies.

All donations will go directly and completely to the bank account of BIDO, the Batwa Indigenous Development Organisation, an organisation by Batwa people that  directly and locally stands up for the cause of in Uganda living Batwa. The money will be used to supply Batwa villages with enough food.

We thank you so much for every donation.