Bogotá, Colombia – June 2025
The Coalition of Pastoralist Civil Society Organizations (COPACSO), through its Coordinator, Mr. Brians Agaba, participated in the 2025 Global Land Forum (GLF), convened in Bogotá, Colombia. The Forum gathered over 1,000 participants from more than 90 countries, including grassroots leaders, land rights defenders, academics, civil society actors, and government representatives.
The Forum provided a critical space to deliberate on urgent land governance issues affecting communities across the globe. This year’s focus – Colombia’s transitional land reforms and their intersection with peacebuilding and inclusive rural development – resonated with many participants facing similar challenges in their countries.
Centering Uganda’s Indigenous Realities
Representing the pastoralist and Indigenous Peoples (IPs) of Uganda, Mr. Agaba delivered a keynote presentation titled “We Were Here First: Indigenous Identity, Dispossession, and the Fight for Cultural Survival in Uganda.” The presentation documented historical and ongoing patterns of land-related marginalization faced by Indigenous groups, including the Batwa, Benet, Karamojong, Ik, and Basongora.
Drawing on field-based testimonies and legal analysis, COPACSO highlighted the following:
- Persistent dispossession of ancestral lands through conservation, mining, infrastructure, and commercial agriculture without Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC);
- Violent evictions, including destruction of homes and property by state actors such as the Uganda Wildlife Authority;
- Suppression of spiritual and cultural practices linked to sacred lands;
- Non-implementation of favourable court rulings, including the 2005 Benet land rights case;
- Demographic and socio-economic decline among some Indigenous groups due to forced displacement and loss of livelihoods.
These findings were anchored in data from national censuses, field consultations, and community-led documentation exercises.
Towards Just and Inclusive Land Governance
COPACSO emphasized that land for Uganda’s Indigenous communities is more than a livelihood asset—it is a cultural and spiritual anchor. The organization advocated for structural reforms that recognize pastoralism and Indigenous systems as legitimate land uses under Ugandan law.
Key recommendations presented included:
- Full restitution and legal demarcation of ancestral territories;
- Ratification of ILO Convention 169 and domestic legal reform aligned with the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP);
- Implementation of outstanding court rulings in favour of Indigenous claimants;
- Institutionalization of FPIC in all land-related development interventions;
- Integration of gender equality and youth engagement in land governance systems.
COPACSO’s Forward-Looking Agenda
Drawing from peer exchanges and comparative experiences at the Forum, COPACSO reaffirmed its commitment to:
- Strengthening Communal Land Associations (CLAs) and traditional land governance institutions;
- Advocating for transparent and participatory land information systems;
- Promoting women’s land rights and inclusive policy dialogue;
- Elevating the voices of Indigenous and pastoralist communities in national and global land policy platforms.
Through a rights-based and community-led approach, COPACSO aims to bridge local realities with global solidarity in pursuit of dignity, justice, and sustainability for Uganda’s historically marginalized peoples.
Uganda’s Indigenous and pastoralist communities are not merely victims of historic injustice-they are stewards of ecological wisdom, cultural resilience, and peacebuilding traditions. COPACSO remains steadfast in amplifying these voices and advancing land justice through policy, advocacy, and partnership.
