E/C.12/UGA/CO/1 Civil society 11. While welcoming the active participation of the many non-governmental organizations (NGOs) during the current reporting cycle, the Committee remains concerned that the 2014 draft bill on NGO registration (amendment) expands the Government’s powers to register, monitor and dissolve NGOs, including those working on social, economic and cultural rights. The Committee recommends that the State party strengthen its cooperation with civil society. It also recommends that the State party amend the draft bill on NGO registration and ensure that its provisions respect the independence of NGOs and their activities in defending human rights, including economic, social and cultural rights. Land rights 12. The Committee is concerned that many persons remain without a formal ownership title over their house and land, and about the persistence of land disputes exacerbated by overlapping claims and rights over land. The Committee is also concerned at the delays in amending the 1998 Land Act, with a view to protecting in particular the rights of access to and ownership of land by women, pastoralists and customary landowners, including communities. The Committee is further concerned about the inadequate implementation of the Land Policy (art. 1). The Committee recommends that the State party harmonize its legal framework governing land rights and that all land-related laws, notably the Land Act and the Forest Act, also be amended in the light of the 2013 Land Policy, which provides additional protection to customary landowners and to indigenous peoples’ right to land. The State party should further take measures to implement the Policy effectively, including through allocation of the necessary resources. The Committee refers in this regard to the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the context of national food security, adopted in 2012 by the Committee on World Food Security of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Indigenous peoples 13. The Committee is concerned that many indigenous peoples, including the Benet, Batwa and Pastoralist communities, are denied access to their ancestral lands and are prevented from preserving their traditional way of living. The Committee is also concerned about the inadequate definition of indigenous peoples in the State party’s Constitution coupled with a complete absence of information on the actual enjoyment of Covenant rights by indigenous peoples (art. 1). The Committee recommends that the State party recognize indigenous peoples’ rights to their ancestral lands and natural resources. The Committee urges the State party to engage in consultations with indigenous peoples to enable them to give their free, prior and informed consent regarding development activities that have an impact on access to their lands. It also recommends that the State party consider accession to the ILO Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention, 1989 (No. 169). Furthermore, the Committee recommends that the State party include recognition of indigenous peoples in the Constitution in line with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and strengthen efforts to consult indigenous peoples and ensure the effective enjoyment of their economic, social and cultural rights. 4