Child protection groups call for increased funding to fight sexual violence

21 August 2026, 5:15 pm

By Ronald Ssemagonja

Civil society organisations and government officials have called for increased funding in Uganda’s 2027/28 national budget to strengthen efforts to prevent and respond to sexual violence against children.

More than 30 child protection stakeholders gathered in Jinja for a three-day retreat organised by World Vision Uganda in partnership with the Joining Forces Coalition.

The retreat brought together representatives from the Uganda Child Rights NGO Network, civil society organisations, cultural institutions, government, the Inter-Religious Council, economists and the Civil Society Budget Advocacy Group.

Discussions focused on whether Uganda has adequate resources to implement existing policies and laws aimed at protecting children from sexual violence.

Opening the retreat, Irene Kagoya, Associate Director for Advocacy at World Vision Uganda, said that although Uganda had made progress in developing policies to protect children, implementation remained a major challenge.

Kagoya warned against complacency over reported reductions in some cases of sexual violence, saying thousands of children still require protection and support.

She urged stakeholders to move beyond policy commitments and focus on practical implementation, particularly by influencing the national budget.

Kagoya said the 2027/28 budget presents an opportunity for child rights organisations to put forward evidence-based proposals and advocate for government funding for interventions targeting sexual violence against children.

Emmanuel Omene, Principal Economist in the Planning Unit at the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development, said the government framework provides opportunities for stakeholders to influence budget priorities.

He explained that children’s issues largely fall under the Human Capital Development Programme, where stakeholders can submit proposals for consideration during the budget process.

Participants agreed that advocacy should increasingly focus on securing actual budget allocations rather than stopping at policy recommendations.

They said the next step was to translate the retreat’s discussions into concrete proposals, costed interventions and measurable demands ahead of the 2027/28 budget process.

The stakeholders said the upcoming budget would be an important test of whether Uganda’s commitments to protecting children would be backed by the financial resources needed to turn policies into action.