Addressing Discriminatory Ugandan Law

Urgent World Bank Action Should Address Discriminatory Ugandan Law

170 Groups Call on the New World Bank President to Defend the Importance of Inclusive Economic Development

(Kampala/New York, June 15, 2023) New World Bank President Ajay Banga should lead specific, concrete and timely actions in response to Uganda’s abhorrent Anti-Homosexuality Act, said 170 civic groups in a letter addressed to him today. The groups come from around the world including Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and North and South America.

“With the development of a new Environmental and Social Framework several years ago, the Bank claimed to value inclusion and non-discrimination. Now it faces a test of that commitment,” said Rachel Burton, Social Inclusion Director of the Bank Information Center. “In the face of Uganda’s blatantly discriminatory law, President Banga should ensure the World Bank takes decisive steps, including stopping payments on current loans to Uganda and suspending future lending until the law is struck down by the constitutional court.”

Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Law goes well beyond criminalizing same sex sexual conduct – something Uganda already has in its Colonial-era criminal laws. The new law mandates that people report knowledge of real or perceived LGBTIQ+ people to police. It also criminalizes “promotion of homosexuality,” meaning any individual or organization, providing healthcare and other services to LGBTIQ+ individuals could face revocation of operating permits, eviction from offices, and possible arrest and prosecution of their staff for the crime of “promotion of homosexuality.” Potentially, anyone who affirms the inherent human rights of LGBTIQ+ people could face a 20-year prison sentence for “promotion.”

World Bank staff and anyone working on World-Bank funded projects could be caught by these provisions of the law, among others. The law already is driving marginalized people away from needed services. This state sponsored discrimination and violence against real or perceived LGBTIQ+ people in all areas of life – from employment, to housing, to health care and education – is devastating to any possibility of inclusive economic development in Uganda.

“We, as activists, are challenging the many devastating impacts of this law in the Constitutional Court, but the World Bank is a key stakeholder in Uganda’s ability to build shared economic prosperity for all. It too must actively press the government to change course by taking action,” said Frank Mugisha, Executive Director of Sexual Minorities Uganda and one of the conveners of Uganda’s Convening For Equality.

World Bank action is critical now to send a strong message to other countries currently considering similarly discriminatory legislation that the World Bank will live up to its own values and rhetoric and comply with its own policies regarding the importance of inclusivity as a driver of economic development, the groups said.

President Ajay Banga
World Bank Group
1818 H Street NW
Washington, D.C. 20433 USA

June 15, 2023

Dear President Banga,

As activists committed to inclusive economic development from around the world, we write to you to urge your proactive leadership to ensure that the World Bank takes specific, concrete and timely actions in response to Uganda’s abhorrent Anti-Homosexuality Act.

The sweeping provisions of this new law paralyze any hope for shared prosperity for all Ugandans and will cause grave harm to the World Bank’s operations in the country. As the world’s most important institution addressing poverty and ending economic inequality, it is a critical time for the World Bank to live up to its own stated commitments.

We write to underscore the position of Uganda’s Convening for Equality (CFE) which has urged the World Bank to take action, including by stopping payment on current loans to Uganda and suspending future lending in Uganda until the law is struck down by the Constitutional Court. We also urge that such World Bank action be made public.

Such decisive action is necessary given Board-mandated policies that govern the World Bank. For example, the Environmental and Social Framework requires that countries ensure that “adverse impacts do not fall disproportionately on the disadvantaged or vulnerable, and they are not disadvantaged in sharing any development benefits and opportunities resulting from the project.” The World Bank Directive on Addressing Risks and Impacts on Disadvantaged or Vulnerable Individuals or Groups and the Good Practice Note on Non Discrimination: Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) require that the Bank assess, mitigate and avoid exclusion and discriminatory impact based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

Furthermore, such actions are necessary in order to send a strong message to several other countries currently considering similar discriminatory legislation that the World Bank will live up to its own values and rhetoric and will comply with its own policies regarding the importance of inclusivity as a driver of economic development.

We appreciate the World Bank’s statement issued on May 31 in which it said that Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Act is “not consistent with the values of non-discrimination and inclusion that the institution upholds.” But we remain concerned about the absence of follow-up actions by the World Bank after this condemnatory statement. Thus far in response to Uganda’s 2023 law, the World Bank has NOT stated what range of possible actions it may take in the face of such a deeply discriminatory law that plainly violates its policies or clearly stated that a review will be conducted to determine a course of action in response to the new law. This must be remedied immediately.

This new law in Uganda will profoundly negatively impact many aspects of the lives of Ugandans as well as World Bank operations. Provisions which require mandated reporting to police of anyone suspected of having committed “the offense of homosexuality” (or any offense in the Act) and criminalize “promotion of homosexuality” violate basic rights to privacy, free expression, freedom of association as well as access to essential social services. World Bank staff and anyone working on World Bank-funded projects could be caught by these provisions of the law, among others. The law drives marginalized people away from needed services and actively mandates state sponsored discrimination and violence against real or perceived LGBTIQ people in all areas of livelihood – from employment, to housing, to health care and education.

In response to a similar law in Uganda in 2014, the World Bank announced a delay of a USD 90 million loan to Uganda’s healthcare sector explicitly because of concerns for discrimination in the wake of that law. Then World Bank President Jim Kim also wrote an op-ed in which he stated that discrimination is bad for economies, as well as for societies and individuals. In 2018, in Tanzania the World Bank suspended all missions to the country, explicitly due to discrimination against LGBTI people.

We request a commitment to stop current and future lending to Uganda as long as the law remains in force. We look forward to your determined leadership in this important time.

Sincerely,

Unify Movements, Global
Accountability International, South Africa and Sweden
Accountability Lab Nepal
Action Against AIDS Germany
Adhara/Sevilla Checkpoint, Spain
Africa Center for International Law and Accountability, Ghana
Africa Japan Forum
Africa Queer Network, Uganda
Africa Rainbow Family, UK
African Services Committee, USA and Ethiopia
AIDS-Fondet (the Danish AIDS Foundation)
All Out, Global
Alliance for South Asian AIDS Prevention, Canada
AMATE, El Salvador
Arms to Lean On (ATLO), Kenya
Association For Promotion of Sustainable Development, Global
AVAC, Global
Bank Information Center (BIC), Global
Campaign against Homophobia, Germany
Campaign for Affordable Trastuzumab, India
Center for Popular Democracy, USA
Centre for Popular Education and Human Rights (CEPERHG), Ghana
CHISA, Malawi
Consolation East Africa, Kenya
Council for Global Equality, USA
Creme De La Creme House of Fame Foundation, Nigeria
Delhi Network of Positive People (DNP+), India
Deutsche Aidshilfe, Germany
Developing Families Together, Ethiopia
Dignity Canada Dignité, Canada
East Africa Trans Health & Advocacy Network (EATHAN), East Africa
East African Network of AIDS Service Organisations (EANNASO), Tanzania
Equality Access to Health and Rights Initiative, Nigeria
Equally Unique Initiative, Kenya
F&M Global Barometers, USA
ForumCiv, Sweden
Foundation Earth, USA
Freeblock13 Kakuma, Kenya
Freedom and Roam Uganda
FRI, Norway
Friends of the Global Fight, USA
Fundación Iguales, Chile
galck+, Kenya
GBGMC, The Netherlands
Global Action for Trans Equality (GATE), USA
Global Alliance for LGBT Education (GALE), Global
Global Black Gay Men Connect, Global
Global Fund Advocates Network, Global
Global Fund for Community Foundations, Global
Global Interfaith Network For People of All Sexes, Sexual Orientations, Gender Identities and Expressions, South Africa
Global Justice Now, UK
Global Network of People Living with HIV (GNP+), Global
God Adores You, Zimbabwe
Grandmothers Against Poverty and AIDS, South Africa
Hands of Hope, Zimbabwe
Health GAP, Global
HIV Justice Network, Global
HIV Legal Network/ Réseau juridique VIH, Canada
HIV/AIDS People Alliance of Kenya
Hope Alive Health Awareness Initiative (HAHAI), Nigeria
House of Our Pride, Eswatini
House of Rainbow, Global
Housing Works, Inc., USA
Human Rights Campaign, USA
ICASO, Global
Immigration Equality, USA
Indonongo, The Netherlands
Initiative for Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights Awareness (ISRHRA), Nigeria
Institute of Allergy and Clinical Immunology of Bangladesh (IACIB)
Interfaith Diversity Network of West Africa, Ghana
International Association of Providers of AIDS Care, USA
International Community of Women Living with HIV/AIDS (ICW) Kenya
International Council of AIDS Service Organisations (ICASO), Global
International IDAHO committee, Global
International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA) Europe
International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA) World, Global
Intersex Canada
Intersex Community of Zimbabwe
Journalists for Human Rights, Global
Justice is Global, USA
Kaleidoscope Trust, UK
KP Consortium, Kenya
Latu Human Rights Foundation, Zambia
Lesbian and Gay Federation in Germany (LSVD)
Let’s Walk Uganda
LGBT+ Denmark
LGBT+ Family Coalition, Canada
Manodiversa Bolivia
Micro Rainbow, UK
Minority Defenders Forum, Organization, Uganda and Kenya
Minority Womyn in Action, Kenya
Miss Star International, Global
Mosaic MENA, Lebanon
Most at Risk Young Mothers and Teenage Girls living with HIV Initiative (MOYOTE), Kenya
MPact Global Action, Global
MusicWorks, South Africa
Namibia Diverse Women’s Association (NDWA)
National Harm Reduction Coalition, USA
Nebula Fund, Global
Negem Lela Ken New HIV Positive women Support Organization (NLK), Ethiopia
Office against Discrimination and Racism, and for Intersectionality (ODRI), Global
OutRight International, Global
Ozanne Foundation, Global
Page blanche pour ton histoire, Gabon
Pan Africa ILGA, South Africa
Picture Youth Group Organization, Kenya
Planned Parenthood Global
Positive Vibes Trust, Namibia
PREKURSOR Foundation for Social Policy, Poland
PrEP4All, USA
Prevention Access Campaign, Global
Pride at Work Canada/Fierté au travail Canada
Public Citizen, USA
Queer Collective, Kenya
Rainbow of Africa Foundation, Ghana
Rainbow Railroad, Global
Rainbow Sunrise Mapambazuko, DRC
Reaching Out Winnipeg, Canada
Recourse, The Netherlands
Red Trans de Bolivia
Release, UK
ReportOUT, Global
Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, USA + Global
Sangram, India
Schwulenberatung Berlin, Germany
Sex og Politikk (International Planned Parenthood Federation), Norway
Sophiatown Community Psychological Services, South Africa
Space for Marginalised Groups in Diversity in Zimbabwe Trust
Stephen Lewis Foundation, South Africa
Stepping Stones International, Botswana
Stonewall, UK
STOPAIDS, UK
Swaziland Positive Living, Eswatini
The Enchanté Network, Canada
The People’s Matrix, Lesotho
Trans Noah Alliance, Uganda
Transgender Law Center, USA
Treatment Action Campaign, South Africa
TUSC Concepts, Kenya
UK Community Advisory Board
Umtha Welanga, South Africa
Unibambusiness, Belize
Utopia_BXL, Belgium
WACI Health, South Africa
Watu Center for Health and Advocacy (WACHA), Kenya
Wem Integrated Health Services, Kenya
Western Kenya Pride
Wiceceka Community Support Organization, Rwanda
Wide Horizon Hospice, South Africa
Women Initiative for Sustainable Empowerment and Equality (WISE), Nigeria
Women Of Faith In Action, Uganda
Womens International League for Peace and Freedom Canada
Workplace Pride Foundation, Global
Youth and Women for Change in Eswatini
Zambia Key Populations Consortium

CC:
Anna Bjerde, Managing Director
Victoria Kwakwa, Regional Vice President
Maninder S. Gill, Director
Juan Pablo Uribe, MD, Director
Keith E. Hansen, Country Director
R. Mukami Kariuki, Country Manager