Devex Newswire: What Uganda’s anti-gay law means for AIDS prevention

Uganda’s effort to fight the ravages of HIV/AIDS has been hurled into the Dark Ages with its draconian anti-gay law. We look at how it affects PEPFAR and the LGBTQ+ community there. Also in today’s edition: How to get back on track after COVID-19 hobbled global education. Plus, we explain how faddish weight-loss drugs are also in demand by doctors in lower-income nations. Hate vs. health Uganda’s anti-gay law is brutal. And while the East African nation is by no means the only country to introduce such harsh policy, its new hardline law is now threatening very real gains made in the fight against HIV/AIDS, which had ravaged its population. The government has sent the population “100 steps backwards,” activists said after President Yoweri Museveni approved the draconian bill, leading to warnings of sanctions and visa restrictions by donor countries. U.S. President Joe Biden called for its “immediate repeal.” The law includes the death penalty for "aggravated homosexuality," defined as same-sex acts involving people living with HIV or minors, among others. It also hands out prison sentences of up to 14 years for “attempted aggravated homosexuality” and 20 years for the “recruitment, promotion, and funding” of homosexuality. The legislation essentially criminalizes inclusive HIV programs and undermines Uganda’s efforts to end AIDS by 2030, writes Devex contributing reporter Amy Fallon. Some said that the bill would make some U.S. President’s Emergency Plans for AIDS Relief-funded programs “completely illegal.” “Automatically we have gone 100 steps backwards in the fight against HIV/AIDS,” Shantal Mulungi, executive director of Coloured Voice Truth, tells Amy, adding that on the same day that the law was approved, her landlord had thrown her out “with immediate effect.” In a joint statement, the Global Fund, UNAIDS, and PEPFAR said, “Uganda’s progress on its HIV response is now in grave jeopardy.” They called for the law to be reconsidered. Read: Uganda's new anti-LGBTQ law could make PEPFAR's work 'illegal' Poland versus the world What’s so important about the still-unsigned Post-Cotonou Agreement between the 27 European Union member states and 79 African, Caribbean, and Pacific countries? For the European Commission, it’s a chance to build alliances in fora such as the United Nations. For the European Investment Bank, it’s the legal basis for lending to ACP countries, worth €2.83 billion last year. And for the 50-person ACP secretariat in Brussels, it’s a meal ticket for another 20 years of existence that some notable names in Europe were starting to question. But for Hungary and now Poland, it’s a political bargaining chip for issues with little to do with the agreement, writes my colleague Vince Chadwick. So it is currently, as Warsaw continues to hold back support for the deal in exchange — it hopes — for a bailout for its agricultural sector, hurting from cheap Ukrainian grain. The EIB will watch nervously when EU and ACP officials meet on Thursday to seek a breakthrough before a June 30 deadline. But whatever happens, if Europe hoped the agreement would bolster its credentials in the global game of influence against Russia and China, so far it’s done a good job of just shooting itself in the foot. Read: Global south group refutes Polish claim to be defending global south (Pro) + Access all our exclusive reporting, analysis, and data-driven funding insights by starting your 15-day free trial of Devex Pro today. Clawing back learning The COVID-19 pandemic devastated the lives of school-age children the world over, but in lower-income nations, years of learning have been lost because of shuttered schools — and there is little hope of recovery. School closures have also had dire consequences for children’s social and emotional health, leading to increased reports of depression, isolation, and higher rates of child marriage and teenage pregnancy, writes Devex contributing reporter Sophie Edwards. Before the pandemic, about 57% of 10-year-olds in low- and middle-income countries — and up to 90% in some parts of Africa — could not read and understand a simple sentence. That figure could now be as high as 70% thanks to COVID-19, according to the World Bank. There have also been massive budget cuts. While warnings about a learning crisis are nothing new, global school closures propelled education into the spotlight and ignited a conversation on how to reform education systems, especially in low- and middle-income countries. But donors and global education experts cannot agree on where countries should put their focus — improve basic literacy and numeracy for younger children or help them develop other competencies such as resilience and critical thinking? Read: Is global education too focused on foundational learning? Celebrity awareness The ever-shrinking waistlines of certain celebrities have gossip columns speculating over whether they are indulging in weight-loss medications such as Ozempic and Wegovy. But while fashionistas have hailed the pricey meds as the go-to to help them squeeze into something small, the drugs have essential medical uses too. They have been singled out for inclusion on the World Health Organization’s Essential Medicines List, writes Devex contributing reporter Andrew Green. The anti-obesity drugs were submitted in March for application to the list, which helps governments determine which treatments should be available to their citizens. “It makes it clear that obesity is a driver of disease and a disease in its own right and there are people who would benefit from the drug,” Johanna Ralston, chief executive of the World Obesity Federation, told Andrew. Including the drugs on the list would only be a preliminary step, though, given the limited availability and high prices of the treatments. Read: Could WHO jumpstart widespread access to obesity medications? + To keep up to date with all the front-line and behind-the-scenes reporting on global health, sign up to Devex CheckUp, our free newsletter on the subject. From words to deeds Philanthropic and venture capital organizations backed by two of the world’s wealthiest men — Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos — are trying to push industries to adopt clean energy while supporting marginalized communities affected by climate change. Climate and environmental philanthropists have entered a “new frontier,” shifting away from “stopping things” such as pollution and deforestation toward upping investment in solutions, said Aliya Haq of Breakthrough Energy, a group of organizations started by Bill Gates in 2015. “It is now about how do we build clean technologies and clean energy as quickly as we can in ways that include community input, in ways that are still building society in a way that is healthy across multiple metrics,” she said. “That’s a huge challenge. And it’s a big pivot for philanthropy, and it’s a big pivot for a lot of the groups that would work on this issue traditionally,” she added during a virtual event for The Economist’s Sustainability Week. Building equity into the climate agenda is “a historic moment” because it recognizes the need to consider marginalized communities, often “bearing the cost” of development, said Cecilia Martinez, the Bezos Earth Fund’s chief of environmental and climate justice, at the event. Read: Gates, Bezos-backed organizations support US clean energy effort + Our Climate Correspondent Will Worley will be speaking alongside Jan Egeland, the secretary general of the Norwegian Refugee Council on June 1. Tune in from 9 a.m. CET to hear an analysis of NRC’s latest report on the world’s most neglected displacement crises. In other news Kenyan dollar bonds rose, easing concerns about its foreign debt after the World Bank approved a $1 billion loan for the country to support its fiscal consolidation and agricultural productivity. [Bloomberg] With 15.3 million people in Syria in desperate need of humanitarian aid, the United Nations disclosed that less than 10% of its appeal has been funded. [AP News] South Korea's inaugural summit with Pacific islands leaders has resulted in an agreement to strengthen development and security cooperation, with Seoul pledging to double its development assistance by 2027. [Reuters] Sign up to Newswire for an inside look at the biggest stories in global development.