Trump cuts scrap vital aid for Ugandan LGBT+ people

Rachel Schraer speaks to those facing dwindling medication and increased discrimination as the funding is ripped away

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At a drop-in centre on Uganda’s border with Kenya, along a busy trucking route, groups of people gather to play Ludo and pick up their HIV medication. It’s a safe space for people from LGBT+ communities who have been turned away or harassed at other facilities.

But the centre is now quiet – three-quarters of its staff have had to be laid off after cuts to US aid. Stocks of drugs are running low and most of its regular clients have stopped showing up. Since January, when Donald Trump came into office for the second time, the centre has lost its funding.

“I have a friend who is taking antiretrovirals [ARVs]. He has now gone a week without,” explains Shafiq, 24, who relies on the centre, putting him at risk of getting sick or infecting others. “It really tortures us so much”.

This comes in the wake of The Independent revealing that the US cuts have derailed the projected end of the Aids pandemic, which could lead to 4 million extra deaths by 2030.

Uganda has faced international criticism for harsh anti-homosexuality laws passed in 2023 – punishing consensual same-sex relationships with penalties of up to life in prison. As a result, specialist services that help LGBT+ people access HIV care are generally run by charities and community organisations outside of the public health system.