A United Front Against Global Policy Shifts in SRHR.

The Issue at Hand

This year’s theme was “Reviewing progress and strengthening advocacy for SRHR in the wake of global policy shifts”. In February, the new administration of Donald Trump cut 90% of USAID foreign aid contracts. These contracts funded countless programmes supporting healthcare, advocacy and education in Uganda—all critical to SRHR efforts. Additionally, Trump reinstated the long-defunct Global Gag Rule (GGR), which bars bodies receiving U.S. funding from providing or advocating for reproductive rights.

The far-right conservative ideologies of the new American administration have caused a global domino effect. In the words of the meeting’s keynote speaker, reproductive health and gender specialist Joy Asasira, “When the U.S. sneezes, the whole world catches cold.” However, America is not alone in this. The Netherlands has recently slashed two thirds of its aid budget for global development and humanitarian causes.

Let us paint a picture of the immediate implications of these policy changes. Thousands of Ugandans employed by development agencies have lost their jobs overnight. This will have a snowball effect on the economy because every single one of those workers was spending their hard-earned money on Ugandan goods and services; money which is now gone. Countless HIV patients have lost access to free and subsidised ARVs. School children have lost free education resources. Human rights groups are now being intimidated into stopping advocacy to comply with the GGR. The list goes on.

So What Can We Do About It?

Despite the stark reality facing us, we must focus our efforts on finding and implementing solutions. Ms. Asasira listed a few practical steps we can take;

Solutions for NGOs

• Explore alternative funding streams like crowdsourcing and income-generating activities. In the long run, endowment funds should be set up as a safety net.
• Document! Document! Document! Record the numbers and carry out case studies on the impact of policy change on our areas of operation. This is the first step in building a case against dangerous anti-humanitarian policies.
• Explore African philanthropy as an alternative to unsustainable Western aid. It is high time we start relying on our own people who share our interests.
• Do not comply in advance. The GGR is not yet in effect, so there is no need to halt reproductive health services until it is. Instead, reach out to groups like the Centre for Constitutional Rights (CCR) for support.
• Translate crucial policy documents like the US Executive Orders and Waivers into as many languages as possible. This will allow information to be shared when language barriers may hinder it.
• Demand that national governments provide budget allocations to bridge the loss of funding, including funds for medicine, human resources and coordination support for service delivery.

Solutions for Funders

• Shield those on the front lines. This can be done by offering new and additional budget lines that cater to mental wellness, increasing administration costs beyond the standard 10%, offering funding to set up alternative shelters in case of attacks, assisting in purchasing VPNs, etc.
• Do not fund both ends of the spectrum. This was seen during the passing of the Anti-Homosexuality Act, where some funders supported both the religious institutions supporting the bill and NGOs fighting the bill. This takes our progress one step forward but two steps back.
• Insist on inserting ‘no harm’ clauses on contracts with religious leaders, especially for elections and peace-building-related work.
• Search for new and more diverse funding recipients. Move away from the “Big Five” and find wider movements to fund beyond a narrow mandate because all issues are connected, from education to family planning to HIV to climate change. We are all under attack. Fund creatively, fund mistakes, fund trials.
• Walk the journey together with the frontline actors. It is no longer feasible to fund and remain neutral. Use your privilege and voice to call out atrocities in closed-door meetings with politicians and remind them of their duty at industry gatherings.

Solutions for Media

• Be critical and independent thinkers. Conduct deep investigations and fact-finding missions to confirm the veracity of the allegations against both sides of the spectrum. Critically assess political narratives by comparing rhetoric with on-the-ground realities, ensuring human rights violations are not obscured by glorified portrayals of political figures.
• Collaborate with experts to reveal hidden truths. Many people both within and outside the SRHR sector don’t have access to the correct information. You play an essential role in bridging this gap.
• Author solution-based articles that offer hope. Creating a “doom and gloom” narrative discourages action. Showcase grassroots innovations and advocacy efforts driving positive change.

A Word from the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development

Numerous representatives from government agencies honoured us by participating in this meeting. Notable among these was Sylvia Primer, who presented the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development’s accomplishments from 2024 and goals for 2025.

Among their many accomplishments last year, they started work on an employment strategy, improved youth centres and disseminated the National Strategy to End Child Marriage and Teenage Pregnancy to 50 districts. In 2025, the ministry aims to train parasocial workers to act as the “foot soldiers” for SRHR across Uganda. Additionally, the policy for the long-awaited update to the National Sexuality Education Framework was passed in February.

Insights from UNESCO

On the side of CSOs, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) was represented by Teddy Chimulwa who presented their 2024 accomplishments as follows. UNESCO submitted the 2022-2024 progress report for the Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA) Commitment to the government. They continue to do joint advocacy with other organisations to prompt the government to sign the ESA Commitment in a bid to improve SRHR for youth across the region. In this multi-pronged approach, UNESCO has also ensured integration of the ESA Commitment targets into different programmes such as the Education Plus Initiative, which sustainably prevents HIV infections among adolescent girls and young women using education as a platform. It has also worked as the joint UN to harmonise teacher-training materials for sexuality education in Uganda. Furthermore, UNESCO has supported the Ministry of Education to develop a three-year access plan on mental health

UNESCO’s 2025 priorities include harnessing the power of growing together through collaboration with their partners, as well as focusing on education, health and wellbeing. They shall achieve this through multiple avenues, including financing existing SRHR issues. They also intend to generate data and advocacy papers on key SRHR issues for advocacy by CSOs. To improve implementation, they aim to get more “left-behind” stakeholders like cultural and religious leaders on board, especially on decision-making levels, not just lower levels. Lastly, they will continue to push for the government to pass pending SRHR policies.

Together for Better!

It’s important to support each other and remain hopeful. While we roll up our sleeves to tackle the tumultuous policy changes around us, we must remember that positive change is possible with effort. We thank all the institutions who took the time to attend last week’s meeting, and we hope you will join us on the journey ahead.

What do you have planned for a better 2025?

By Cynthia Kinyera