Worldwide reversal of women's rights jeopardizes the attainment of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
In a call to action, Aukrust, Norway's Minister of International Development and Nordic Co-operation, urges world leaders to uphold international commitments, particularly regarding Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR). This plea comes as a decade has passed since the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a global initiative aimed at ensuring peace, prosperity, and dignity for all by 2030.
Norway has pledged its support, investing 10.4 billion Norwegian krone (NOK) from 2020 to 2025 to uphold international norms and bolster frontline civil society partners. This investment aims to counteract the ongoing funding gaps and political pushback in the context of the rapid rise of an anti-rights movement dismantling decades of progress in SRHR.
In Kenya and Uganda, dozens of mobile health clinics serving remote areas have been suspended, and health centres offering reproductive and maternal care have been closed. This retreat in SRHR progress undermines broader sustainable development goals (SDGs), as SRHR is foundational for gender equality, health, education, and economic growth.
Progress in SRHR and gender equality builds healthier, more resilient societies. When women and girls can access modern contraception, maternal care, including safe abortion and accurate information, entire communities benefit. However, today, we are witnessing the rapid rise of an anti-rights movement working to dismantle decades of progress in SRHR.
Restrictive legislation on SRHR contributes to increased maternal and infant mortality. A notable increase in funding for anti-rights movements in Africa has reinforced coordinated efforts to restrict sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), including pushing for total bans on abortion and other limitations.
Simultaneously, funding for women’s rights and feminist organizations in Africa has sharply declined or remained severely constrained. The median annual budget for African women’s rights organizations was only about $22,000 in 2023, with many facing closure risks due to underfunding and the short-term, project-based nature of grants.
International calls for action emphasize the urgency to increase long-term, flexible funding for feminist and women’s rights movements to counterbalance the expanding anti-rights bloc. Supporting feminist organizations has proven effective in sustaining advocacy and access to SRHR, especially in contexts of conflict or political instability.
Aukrust, a SheDecides Champion, emphasizes the importance of defending rights-based language in all negotiations and investing in a future where women’s rights are unequivocally valued and secured. Norway has announced an increase in its support for SRHR by 86.5 million NOK.
The imbalance in funding between anti-rights movements and pro-rights organizations exacerbates threats to SRHR outcomes and compromises regional commitments like those under the Maputo Protocol and the SDGs. This dynamic highlights the urgent need to rebalance funding and political support to protect and advance SRHR across Africa.
- The Norwegian Minister of International Development and Nordic Cooperation, Aukrust, supports the SDGs and emphasizes the importance of investment in science, particularly in the field of health-and-wellness, focusing on women's health as a crucial part of the global initiative.
- Aukrust, a champion of the SheDecides movement, calls for increased long-term, flexible funding for feminist and women's health organizations, as the imbalance in funding between anti-rights movements and pro-rights organizations threatens the progress made in Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) outcomes across Africa, especially within the context of the SDGs.
){kind=link}