Focus on sustainable refugee reception, health and human rights as Benjamin Dousa visits Uganda
Published
On 17–19 March, Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Benjamin Dousa is travelling to Uganda. Mr Dousa will visit the north-western part of the country, where Sweden supports host communities that receive refugees.
Uganda is Africa’s largest recipient of displaced people with nearly 2 million refugees in the country. Mr Dousa is visiting during a critical period for the region, with an ongoing armed conflict in the eastern parts of the neighbouring Democratic Republic of the Congo.
“Swedish support to Uganda makes a concrete difference by providing protection and access to health care and essential supplies to refugees. The situation has created a major demand for long-term and sustainable conditions for refugees’ self-sufficiency. Sweden continues to support this through the new Strategy for Sweden’s development cooperation with Uganda 2025–2029. Over the next five years, the Government is also investing SEK 4.3 billion in global health, including maternal health care, contraception and safe abortions, in order to improve the situation for women and girls in countries such as Uganda,” says Mr Dousa.
Mr Dousa will travel to north-western Uganda to see how Sweden’s development assistance funds are helping alleviate the humanitarian situation for newly arrived refugees. In the capital of Kampala, he will visit health clinics and speak with recipients of Swedish support aimed at strengthening women’s economic empowerment and entrepreneurship. He will also take part in meetings to highlight Swedish business solutions that can contribute to a green and digital transition as part of the ambition to scale up trade exchange with Uganda.
Swedish development cooperation with Uganda
In 2024, Sweden’s overall development assistance channelled to Uganda through Sida amounted to SEK 377 million, of which SEK 41 million was humanitarian assistance. The Swedish Government has adopted a new development assistance strategy for Uganda totalling SEK 1.5 billion for the period 2025–2029. The aim is to contribute to entrepreneurship, job creation, environment, climate, health, sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), human rights, democracy and gender equality. The Strategy is part of Sweden’s overall development assistance and foreign policy.
Swedish support to global health and SRHR
The Government has decided to invest SEK 4.3 billion in global health and strengthened sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) for the period 2025–2029. The Strategy focuses on the most vulnerable people with the greatest needs in low- and middle-income countries such as Uganda.
Swedish support to the UN system
Swedish is a major donor to the UN organisations working in Uganda to support health (including SRHR), health care, education, gender equality and human rights for those who are most vulnerable, including refugees. Support is channelled partly through the Strategy for Sweden’s development cooperation with Uganda and also through extensive core support at global level to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), UN Women and the UN World Food Programme (WFP).
Press contact
Press Secretary to Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Benjamin Dousa
Phone (switchboard) +46 8 405 10 00
Mobile +46 76 133 67 90
email to Linn Laurin
