Ugandan and international civil society organisations are “alarmed” that the World Bank may resume lending to Uganda after it paused its funding in response to the Anti-Homosexuality Act (AHA) becoming law.
In August 2023, the bank halted new lending to Uganda, after the country passed one of the most draconian anti-LGBTIQ laws in the world. Since July, the World Bank has been testing ‘mitigation measures’ intended to ensure that LGBTIQ people do not face any exclusion from the ongoing projects it funds in Uganda.
These include issuing “training manuals and sensitisation materials” with “direct language” to “guide the government team, contractors, and subcontractors by indicating that sexual and gender individuals and groups are included” in bank-funded projects. The measures came about after a four-day consultation with the Ugandan government and civil society organisations in January this year.
