In Uganda, authoritarian leadership has made the country increasingly hostile to activists fighting for the rights of women and girls, LGBTQI+ people and sex workers. After the passage of a 2023 law criminalizing homosexuality with prison and the death penalty, life for LGBTQI+ Ugandans is more dangerous than ever. AJWS mobilizes international advocacy campaigns to stand up for justice and human rights, while offering direct support for these at-risk communities to challenge bad laws and practices, offer legal aid and crisis response, and engage in advocacy for a safer environment. AJWS also supports economic empowerment programs, access to sexual and reproductive health services and mental health support so the community can better cope with the stigma, risk and isolation they face.
Across western and northern Uganda, AJWS supports feminist collectives and grassroots movements fighting to protect their communities’ land, forests and natural resources. These rural and Indigenous communities have seen their ancestral lands threatened by large-scale development such as logging and industrial agriculture that exacerbate the climate crisis, displace thousands and thrust families into poverty. As AJWS partners speak up against these industries, they’re also helping their communities thrive by expanding food sovereignty through ecological, small-scale agriculture.