Extractives & Infrastructure

Fresh concerns over huge fossil fuel auction in DRC after government signs first gas production sharing agreements

29 September 2023

The government of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has awarded the first contracts in an auction of 30 oil and gas blocks in the tropical forest country to a forfeited company in the US and to another with no known experience in the industry, renewing concerns over the controversial tender. At a ceremony in … Read more

African Civil Society Decries Corporate Capture of the Africa Climate Summit

4 September 2023

African Civil Society Decries Capture of the Africa Climate Summit by Corporate Interests   As African leaders gather for the Africa Climate Summit, hundreds of African organisations have expressed concerns about the corporate capture of the event.  The inaugural summit – held in Nairobi, Kenya, from 4 to 6 September – is billed as a crucial … Read more

A Make Or Break Moment: Fossil Fuel Expansion In The Amazon And Congo Basins Is An Existential Threat To Climate And Communities

6 June 2023

Financial system decisions now pivotal to ending fossil fuel expansion in the world’s largest tropical rainforests Recent reports spotlight plans for fossil fuel expansion in some of the world’s most important ecosystems, and follow financial flows from major banks Banks, financial institutions, and their regulatory bodies have a key role to play in reducing threats … Read more

NGOs Urge International Community to Act on Impending Natural Resource Grab in DRC

23 March 2023

Fifteen Congolese and International NGOs have warned of an imminent sell-off of timber, oil and carbon rights in the run-up to elections in the Democratic Republic of Congo later this year.  In a letter to the Inter-Donor Group on Environment and Climate (GIBEC) ahead of its planned meeting with DRC President Tshisekedi this week, we call … Read more

Congo in the Crosshairs: Oil and Gas Expansion Threats to Climate, Forests, and Communities

10 November 2022

A new comprehensive mapping and analysis by RFUK and Earth Insight shows that oil and gas expansion in the Congo Basin is a rapidly accelerating existential threat to the global climate, and to the world’s second largest rainforest – including the tens of millions of people who live there. There is still time for African … Read more

Congolese civil society releases position paper calling into question the legality of DRC oil and gas auction

28 October 2022

A group of environmental civil society organisations in the Democratic Republic of Congo have just released a position paper detailing the multitude of issues with the government’s auction of oil and gas blocks covering the country’s forests, threatening its carbon-rich peatlands, several protected areas and millions of local livelihoods. The CSOs express concern not only … Read more

In Cameroon, the critically important Ebo forest is under threat from a road building project

4 August 2022

A 200,000 hectare intact forest in Cameroon is under threat from a road-building project, which could lead to devastating impacts on critically endangered wildlife and more than 40 communities who call Ebo home. While the road-building project is purported to bring development opportunities to the villages affected, closer inspection of the plan shows that this … Read more

Press Release: Petition of 100,000 signatures handed to DRC President to stop new oil development

25 July 2022

Kinshasa, 25 July 2022 – More than 100,000 people have signed a petition calling on President Félix Tshisekedi of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to end the development of new oil and gas fields in the country. The petition was launched earlier this month by Congolese and international NGOs and was handed over today … Read more

Calls for President Felix Tshisekedi to cancel plans for oil drilling in DRC’s tropical rainforests

18 July 2022

RFUK together with Rainforest Rescue, Greenpeace Africa, 350.org and other African civil society groups have launched a petition calling on President Felix Tschisekedi to cancel the upcoming July 28-29 auction of oil exploration rights to some of DRC’s most sensitive tropical forests. The planned auction of 16 oil blocks across the country is a deeply … Read more

Saving the Cuvette Centrale Peatlands

9 June 2022

How local communities are critical to protecting one of the largest carbon sinks from extractive industries