Uganda: Activists Slam World Bank’s “Façade” Plan to Resume Loans

Activists are pushing back against the possibility of the World Bank resuming lending to Uganda despite the country’s continued oppression of LGBTQ+ people.

In August 2023, the World Bank suspended new loans to Uganda due to the draconian Anti-Homosexuality Act, which was signed into law in May that year.

The move followed pressure from more than 170 rights groups, including ILGA World, The Human Rights Campaign, Outright International, and Rainbow Railroad, calling on the organisation to take action over the legislation.

At the time, the World Bank said it was working with the government to implement “mitigation measures” to ensure that sexual and gender minorities would not face discrimination within its funded projects.

In late 2023, Victoria Kwakwa, the bank’s head for Eastern and Southern Africa, indicated that the institution might consider resuming loans to Uganda if the government agreed not to arrest LGBTQ+ individuals in connection with its programmes, and that the “government is comfortable with that.”

It is understood that the World Bank has been testing these measures since July 2024 in order to make a final decision.

World Bank’s Mitigation Measures Under Scrutiny

In a follow-up letter to the World Bank, dated 16 September 2024, dozens of rights groups have rejected the notion that “mitigation measures” could protect LGBTQ+ people while the Anti-Homosexuality Act remains in place.

“To be clear, nothing has improved in Uganda regarding the protection of the rights of LGBTQ+ people or their ability to participate in the economy of Uganda since the bill was signed into law in 2023,” states the letter.

The groups expressed concern that “the World Bank’s mitigation measures are gravely flawed both in structure and substance and that implementing them will be a setback in the fight for non-discrimination, not only in Uganda but globally.”

They pointed out that discrimination against LGBTQ+ people is codified in Ugandan law, “so the government cannot be a partner in mitigating these harms.”

They further described the mitigation measures as “a façade” and “akin to putting the Taliban in charge of monitoring violations of women’s and girls’ rights in Afghanistan.”

Global Implications of the World Bank’s Actions

The letter added that the measures are unlikely to protect LGBTQ+ Ugandans from discrimination and risk worsening the situation by driving key issues underground.

“Furthermore, we understand that the World Bank plans to use this approach in response to other governments’ discriminatory laws and policies, providing an illusion of protection while sanctioning discriminatory governments. As such, they are a massive setback to the fight for inclusive economic development,” the groups said.

“We are calling on you to show leadership now: do not restart lending to Uganda. Restarting lending to a country that is flagrantly and continuously violating the rights of vulnerable people, based on this package of appallingly weak measures, will go down in history as a green light not only for the discrimination of Ugandans but also for enabling governments to embrace discriminatory policies and laws globally,” they concluded.

Since the Anti-Homosexuality Act was enacted, there have been hundreds of reported human rights violations targeting LGBTQ+ people, including arrests, evictions, forced anal examinations, torture, and violations of the right to equality and freedom from discrimination.

The law imposes life imprisonment for engaging in homosexual acts and the death penalty for “aggravated” homosexuality. It also outlaws the “promotion of homosexuality,” putting human rights defenders advocating for LGBTQ+ rights at risk of imprisonment for up to 20 years.

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— Hans senfuma (@senfumahans) September 24, 2024

World Bank wants to support a silent genocide against LGBTQI+ Ugandans. #RepealAHA23 #StandUp4HumanRights pic.twitter.com/sZMdoGaVnS

— Steven Kabuye (He/Him) (@SteveKabuye5) September 24, 2024