‘Family values’ African charter condemned by rights groups as regressive and dangerous

Draft treaty claims sexual and reproductive health and rights are an existential threat to the African family

Isabel Choat
Fri 5 Jun 2026

An African treaty that rejects longstanding international human rights obligations moved a step closer to becoming policy this week as governments across the continent met in Ghana.

The draft African charter on family, sovereignty and values, seen by the Guardian, asserts that African values and culture are under attack from “foreign ideologies” and urges states to withdraw from any agreements that do not align with the principles of the charter, including the 2003 Maputo protocol, which promotes gender equality and protects the reproductive and health rights of women and girls.

Continued: https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2026/jun/05/ghana-african-charter-family-values-gender-women-sex-lgbtq-reproductive-rights

Geneva Consensus Declaration: Institutionalizing Attacks on Women and LGBTQ+ Rights

May 28, 2026

Trump’s former Special Representative for Global Women’s Health and a long-time anti-abortion activist, Valerie Huber, argued recently in an opinion piece in The Hill that an international anti-abortion agreement she spearheaded is one of the “most underused diplomatic assets in America’s current foreign policy toolkit.”

Huber, now CEO of The Institute for Women’s Health, served during the first Trump administration, where she was instrumental in the creation of the October 2022 Geneva Consensus Declaration (GCD). Signed by 41 countries, the GCD is a nonbinding international agreement with the stated goal of promoting better “health for women, the preservation of human life, strengthening of the family as the foundational unit of society, and protecting every nation’s national sovereignty in global politics.”

Continued: https://globalextremism.org/post/geneva-consensus-declaration/

Special edition: A tale of two movements — all at the same time

At the Commission on the Status of Women, the tangle over money, policy, and influence is shaping the future of women’s rights.

By Elissa Miolene
13 March 2026

The 70th Commission on the Status of Women has hit its halfway mark, with a historic vote on Monday foreshadowing a division that only grew throughout the week.

On one side, there’s the United Nations, large international aid agencies, and a collection of countries — from Sweden to Spain — that are pushing for more progressive women’s rights. On the other hand, there’s a constellation of nations, faith-based groups, and anti-abortion activists that are advocating for family values, while accusing the U.N. of indoctrinating developing nations when it comes to sex, abortion, and gender identity.

Continued: https://www.devex.com/news/special-edition-a-tale-of-two-movements-all-at-the-same-time-112072

The Geneva Consensus, Maputo Protocol and Tanzania’s silent crisis

Anthony Tambwe
Feb 23, 2025

DAR ES SALAAM: IN October 2020, a coalition of countries led by the United States under President Donald Trump unveiled the Geneva Consensus Declaration on Promoting Women’s Health and Strengthening the Family.

Though non-binding, the declaration sent a powerful political message…. ‘abortion should not be recognised as an international right and should not be promoted as a method of family planning’.

It reaffirmed national sovereignty over abortion laws and emphasised the inherent dignity of human life.

Continued: https://dailynews.co.tz/the-geneva-consensus-maputo-protocol-and-tanzanias-silent-crisis/

23.02.2026

Commentary

anti-choice hypocrisy

anti-choice misogyny

Dr Ahmed Makuwani

Geneva Consensus Declaration

Maputo Protocol

Mathew Mwaimu

Tanzania Commission for Human Rights and Good Governance

As the US exports ideological harm in health aid, here’s how to resist it

Opinion: As the Mexico City Policy expands, U.S. aid now polices values as well as services. Silence may feel strategic — but it’s already causing harm. Here’s a global health resistance agenda.

By Kent Buse, Sonja Tanaka, Lynsey Robinson, Sharmila L. Mhatre
11 February 2026

The recent expansion of the United States’ Mexico City Policy marks a turning point for global health and development assistance. What was once a contested restriction on abortion-related services has been transformed into a sweeping ideological test, applied across nonmilitary foreign aid.

The damage to health systems from last year’s Presidential Memorandum reinstating the Mexico City Policy is already evident, reflecting patterns well documented during previous enforcement periods. But the more fundamental question now is whether global health groups will accept this shift — or organize to resist it.

Continued: https://www.devex.com/news/as-the-us-exports-ideological-harm-in-health-aid-here-s-how-to-resist-it-111849

11.02.2026

Opinion

Geneva Consensus Declaration

Global Gag Rule

Mexico City policy

PHFFA

Promoting Human Flourishing in Foreign Assistance

‘Trojan horse moment’: anti-rights groups seize chance to fill void left by US aid cuts

Ultra-conservative Christian organisations look to reshape global health landscape as new aid agreements open door to demands restricting family planning services

Isabel Choat
Wed 17 Dec 2025

The sudden stop work order on USAID in January 2025 sent shock waves around the world. Many health clinics were immediately shut down, leaving millions without access to vital medicines and facilities, with potentially deadly consequences, especially for HIV patients, children, and women and adolescent girls.

To many, the subsequent axing of 83% of USAID programmes seemed like pure nihilism, engineered by ideologues who wanted to kill off the agency. But there was a long-term vision behind the destruction. The gutting of USAID has cleared a path for the next phase of a plan to reshape the global health landscape, say reproductive justice campaigners.

Continued: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/dec/17/trojan-horse-moment-anti-rights-groups-fill-void-us-aid-cuts

The Ripple Effects of the U.S. Retreat from International Reproductive Care

U.S. cuts to global health funding are putting reproductive rights, healthcare access and human rights at risk worldwide. Human rights experts discuss exactly what’s happening—and what would stop the suffering.

10/19/2025
by Jaime M. Gher, Payal Shah and Floriane Borel

The U.S. has long been the largest donor to global health programs, but under the Trump administration, that support is rapidly disappearing. The resulting funding cuts are devastating reproductive health access, disease prevention efforts and human rights around the world.

In this Q&A, global health and human rights experts Jaime M. Gher, Payal Shah and Floriane Borel break down the global ripple effects—and the urgent need for action.

Continued: https://msmagazine.com/2025/10/19/usa-trump-international-global-health-aid-cuts/

The First 100 Days of the Trump-Vance Administration: Attacks on Reproductive Freedom and Scientific Evidence

Amy Friedrich-Karnik, Anna Bernstein, Emma Stoskopf-Ehrlich, Guttmacher Institute
April 24, 2025

In its first 100 days, the Trump-Vance administration has attempted to dismantle and disrupt a broad range of domestic and international programs and policies, sowing chaos and negatively impacting the lives of millions. Through executive orders, funding freezes, contract terminations, mass layoffs and other actions—many of which have been challenged as unconstitutional—these policy changes have, by design, had an especially detrimental impact on the sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) of people in the US and across the world.

These actions constitute an attack on both science and the basic value of reproductive freedom. Their impact has been immediate and will continue to have long-term and far-reaching consequences.

Continued: https://www.guttmacher.org/2025/04/first-100-days-trump-vance-administration-attacks-reproductive-freedom-and-scientific

24.04.2025

Commentary

Geneva Consensus Declaration

DRC – Dr. Jean-Claude Mulunda: Breaking the silence on the need for safe abortion care in humanitarian settings

IPAS
Feb 28, 2025

Early in his career, Ipas Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) director Dr. Jean-Claude Mulunda, then a coordinator with a refugee agency, was confronted with the plight of women and girls who had suffered sexual violence fleeing Central African Republic for refuge in DRC.

“In my report to the supervisor, I noted that over 60% of the women and girls were rape victims. Many of them, including little girls who could not be more than 12, were pregnant. They were also dealing with sexually transmitted infections and malnutrition,” he explains.

Continued; https://www.ipas.org/news/drc-safe-abortion-care-in-humanitarian-settings/

Attacks on reproductive health will have devastating consequences worldwide

MSF is committed to ensuring people have access to sexual and reproductive health services, but we cannot do it alone.

January 28, 2025

Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) condemns the Trump Administration’s recent reinstatement of the Mexico City Policy, more commonly known as the Global Gag Rule, as well as the US government’s support of the so-called Geneva Consensus Declaration.

The Global Gag Rule prevents organizations abroad from using their own non-US government funds to provide or advocate for safe abortion care as a condition to receive US global health assistance. This includes direct services, as well as information, counseling, and referrals, even in countries where abortion is legal. When the policy was last in place from 2017 to 2021, critical health programs were disrupted and suspended in low- and middle-income countries.

Continued: https://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/latest/attacks-reproductive-health-will-have-devastating-consequences-worldwide

28.01.2025