For more information, please contact Emilie Thenard (ethenard@ciel.org) or Delphine Djiraibe (ddjiraibe@ciel.org) 

CIEL has been supporting the advocacy efforts of civil society organizations and local communities affected by the highly controversial project known as the "Chad-Cameroon Pipeline". This high risk oil development and export project developed by a consortium of multinational companies (ExxonMobil, Petronas and Chevron) consists in drilling approximately 300 oil wells in the Doba Bassin of Chad and lay a 1,070 kilometer-long pipeline through Chad and Cameroon to an exporting dock off of the coast of Kribi.

For several years before the Bank approved the project on June 6, 2000, civil society organizations in Chad and Cameroon were calling for a moratorium on this project, asking that the Bank invest first in the infrastructure that is necessary for sustainable development: good governance, independent judiciary, rule of law, involvement of civil society in government decision-making, respect for human rights, and environmental protection. Without these safeguards in place, local communities believe that the Chad/Cameroon pipeline project is a recipe for disaster particularly in light of the poor human rights record and rampant corruption.

For more information about the project, follow the links below:

Current Status

• One year after the project's approval, many promises made by the World Bank have not been kept. Read Friends of the Earth's report -- Broken Promises: Profit at Any Cost?
  
  

• Summary of Concerns about the project.

• CIEL's letter of concern sent to Mr. James Wolfensohn, President of the World Bank.

Inspection Panel Claim

The Panel received a formal request in December of 2000 from Mr. Ngarlejy Yorongar, acting on the behalf of residents living in the vicinity of 3 oil fields in the Doba region of Chad. The Request alleged that the World Bank had failed to comply with its policies and procedures in such pertinent areas as Environmental Assessment, Indigenous Peoples, Involuntary Resettlement, Economic Evaluation of Investment Operations, etc. The Request also discussed the repercussions of the World Banks failure to comply with its policies, such as violations to human rights, expropriation without compensation, and environmental degradation, etc.

After an initial investigation, the Inspection Panel has verified the eligibility of the Request, and is planning to conduct a formal investigation in Chad in the second half of November. The Panel's investigation has been approved by the Board of Directors, and the Panel will likely be submitting its report to the Board of the World Bank in early 2002.

• April 2001: The Panel registers the claim.

• Read more about the Inspection Panel.

International Advisory Group (IAG)

In response to local and international civil society concerns particularly regarding the absence of government capacity to respect human rights, protect the environment and avoid corruption in both Chad and Cameroon (see July 10, 2000 Appeal), the World Bank agreed to set up for the first time an International Advisory Group (IAG) as a condition for the approval of the project. Particularly it was meant to provide assurances to the affected people, civil society organizations and concerned governments that the proposed mitigation and compensation plans are adequately implemented; that Bank policies are enforced; and that a high standard of compliance is maintained throughout the life of the project. This mechanism is particularly important given the notoriously weak reputation of the World Bank, particularly in policy compliance and project supervision.

September 2001: The IAG made the first of their biannual working visits to Cameroon and Chad in the end of July 2001 and just published it first report. It emphasized the concern that there is a fundamental discrepancy between the capacity and resources of the oil consortium versus the lack of resources, communication, and capacity of local government and business in Chad and Cameroon. This disequilibrium has created a precarious situation where there is an absence of local private sector involvement, a lack of communication between citizens, regional governments, and the oil consortium, and where there is a real threat to the rights and security of local populations, as had been forseen during project preparation.

• September 2001: Read the IAG's first mission report and executive summary
  • Lisez le premier rapport de mission du GIC et son résumé
    
    
• February 2001:  Read the Open Letter to the President of the World Bank concerning the International Advisory Group
  • Lettre ouverte au President de la Banque mondiale au sujet du Groupe international consultatif (GIC)
    

• February 2001:  Environmentalists Express Concern as World Bank Announces 
  Watchdog for Chad-Cameroon Pipeline  (Press Release)
  
  • View the World Bank's public announcement on the terms of reference and composition for the International Advisory Group (IAG)
• Lisez l'annonce de la Banque Mondiale sur les termes de reference et la composition du Groupe International Consultatif
  
  
• September 2000: read the letter to Shengman Zhang Regarding the International Advisory Group
  
  

Background Documents

• Proceed to the World Bank's page on the Chad-Cameroon Pipeline Project.

• Chad military threatens citizens with death for opposing the controversial oil pipeline set for approval by World Bank.

• View the Bebedjia Declaration (in French), a document prepared by civil society organizations in Chad and endorsed by civil society groups in Cameroon.

• Click on the country names to read their respective US State Department 1999 Human Rights Reports for Chad and Cameroon.