The World Bank has denied bias in its decision to halt further lending to Uganda over the country’s anti-LGBTQ law.
Last week, the lender announced the suspension of further financing to the east African nation after the government approved a stringent anti-homosexuality law.
The World Bank said the new law, widely condemned by western countries for its perceived infringement on human rights, “fundamentally contradicts” its values.
“We believe our vision to eradicate poverty on a livable planet can only succeed if it includes everyone irrespective of race, gender, or sexuality,” the bank said.
“This law undermines those efforts. Inclusion and non-discrimination sit at the heart of our work around the world.”
The bank’s decision has drawn criticisms, not least from the Ugandan government, which denounced the move as “unjust and hypocritical”.
Foreign minister Okello Oryem said the bank was lending to countries in the Middle East that have harsher laws on homosexuality comparatively.
“There are many Middle East countries who do not tolerate homosexuals, they actually hang and execute homosexuals, in the United States of America many states have passed laws that are either against or restrict activities of homosexuality … So why pick on Uganda?” he said.
Case-by-case
Some, including in Nigeria which also has an anti-gay law but continues to engage with the World Bank, have also wondered why Uganda’s case was different.
There are 64 countries that have laws that criminalise homosexuality, and nearly half of these are in Africa.
One Nigerian commentator cited the situation in a country such as Afghanistan where the Taliban have barred girls from having education, yet still received the bank’s attention.
“Afghanistan has banned girls from getting an education in schools. The World Bank is still in Afghanistan. Yet the World Bank has pulled out of Uganda. It’s hypocrisy,” Kalu Aja, a financial analyst, wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
The World Bank told Pluboard its principles remained the same, but said it will “consider these issues as they arise on a case-by-case basis.”
“While we would not want to speculate about legislative developments in other member countries, the principle remains the same: The WB’s environmental and social requirements apply to each investment project financed by the WB,” a senior official said, requesting not to be quoted.
The bank said it has due diligence obligations to mitigate risks for individuals or groups who, by virtue of sexual orientation or gender identity, may be more likely to be adversely affected by the projects it funds, or more limited in their ability to benefit from such projects.
Not the first time
It is not the first time the World Bank has suspended financing to Uganda over the country’s anti-gay law.
The bank took a similar action in 2014 by postponing a $90 million loan to Uganda over its anti-homosexuality law, which also drew criticisms from western powers.
Bank officials at the time said they wanted to guarantee the health projects the loan was destined to support were not going to be adversely affected by the law.
That law was later nullified.
The bank told Pluboard it took action against Afghanistan for denying girls education. It cited its decision in March 2022 to put four projects in Afghanistan worth $600 million on hold as the country’s ruling Islamist leaders moved to ban girls from returning to public high schools.
“In each case and consistent with the World Bank’s policies, procedures, and directives, the World Bank undertakes an assessment of the project, including the beneficiary country’s obligations to ensure that its impacts do not result in discrimination,” its official told us.
The bank said its decision against Uganda meant that no new public financing to Uganda will be presented to its board of directors “until the efficacy of the additional measures has been tested.”
The bank said it will discuss measures to address the impact of the new legislation, and that its portfolio of existing loans, at about $5.2 billion, will continue to disburse.
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