a project of

Canadian company ReconAfrica is opening up a new oil and gas frontier in an area spanning from the northeast of Namibia to the northwest of Botswana. It holds exploration licenses covering 8.5 million acres between both countries, with Namibian state-owned oil company NAMCOR maintaining a 10% equity in the Namibian license.¹⁹²³³ Civil society organizations from both countries have called for an immediate halt of oil and gas exploration as ReconAfrica’s planned megaproject would cause immense harm to local communities and the region’s rich wildlife.

ReconAfrica is searching for oil in the Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Nature Conservation Area (KAZA), a protected and ecologically fragile area. The KAZA crosses the borders of Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe, and is nearly twice as large as the United Kingdom. The Okavango River flows right through the KAZA. Its water originates as seasonal rain in Angola’s highlands. In Botswana, the Okavango River fans out into the Kalahari Desert to form the Okavango Delta. The Okavango Delta transforms this otherwise dry area into a waterlogged wetland that provides vital water resources for animals, plants and over one million people.¹⁴⁶¹¹ The Okavango Delta is protected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.¹⁵³²¹

In total, more than 200,000 people live in the area that falls under ReconAfrica’s exploration licenses in the Kavango Basin.¹⁴⁶¹⁹ Many locals only learned about the company’s plans once ReconAfrica began drilling.¹⁴⁶²¹ The Canadian company started its work without the knowledge or approval of local communities.^1461914623 In the rare cases where ReconAfrica provided information, it did so only in English, rather than in people’s native language.¹⁴⁶²⁵

Ever since ReconAfrica launched its project in the Okavango Region, local people have reported the company's disregard of national and local regulations.¹⁴⁶²³ The chairperson of the Kapinga Kamwalye Conservancy, Thomas Muronga, said that ReconAfrica drilled illegally within the conservancy borders.¹⁴⁶¹⁹ In the George Mukoya conservancy, the company has reportedly constructed a road through an intact forest without the necessary permits.¹⁴⁶²³ A farmer family has sued ReconAfrica for clearing their land without their permission.¹⁴⁶²⁷ The Namibian government found the company to have violated several laws throughout its operations, but stopped short of revoking its license.¹⁹⁴³⁵ In the United States, investors have taken ReconAfrica to court over their environmentally reckless drilling plans and the failure to consult local communities in Namibia and Botswana.¹⁴⁶²⁹ The company gets creative when it comes to stopping incoming criticism. In September 2021, ReconAfrica offered jobs to Thomas Muronga and Max Muyemburuko, two outspoken critics of the project. They both turned down the offer, which they saw as an attempt to silence them.¹⁹⁴³⁸

ReconAfrica’s credibility has been repeatedly questioned by investors and industry experts.¹⁵³²³ According to the investigative research group Viceroy Research, the company’s initial communications surrounding its Okavongo discovery appeared intentionally misleading. ReconAfrica allegedly paid for investment websites to publish numerous articles containing mislabeled, incomplete, and unconfirmed information concerning its operations.^{15325 19436} Viceroy claims ReconAfrica did this intentionally to target small-time investors using a Cambridge Analytica-style fake news network.¹⁵³²⁷ It is certainly dubious that a company with no previous experience in the sector came to hold the license for a generational discovery in a country where no productive reservoir has been discovered in 60 years.¹⁵³²⁹ ReconAfrica has since faced numerous shareholder lawsuits claiming to have been misled by the company. In 2024, ReconAfrica agreed to pay over USD 10 million to settle such claims by US and Canadian investors.  ^{153311533315335} In 2023, Canadian authorities opened an investigation into the company for potential fraud and corruption.¹⁵³³⁷ Canadian legal experts have requested the Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise investigate ReconAfrica for apparent human rights violations in Namibia.¹⁹⁴³⁷

In the meantime, ReconAfrica continues to set up drilling rigs in the unique Okavango region.¹⁵³³⁹ It now claims to have identified a vast reserve of natural gas on the Namibian side of the Kavongo Basin.^1944015341 The scramble has begun. Norwegian company BW Energy Ltd has acquired a 20% stake in the discovered reserves, while ReconAfrica rushes to build even more roads and drill more exploration wells in the region.¹⁹⁴⁴¹ The Okavango River is a lifeline for the big five animal species: elephants, buffalos, rhinos, lions and leopards. The world's largest remaining population of endangered savanna elephants lives in the region, next to giraffes, zebras, antelopes, pangolins, 400 bird species and over 1,000 plant species.¹⁴⁶³¹ The unique wildlife attracts tourists from near and far.