Connecting safe abortion advocates in Uganda

SAAF is currently funding 87 organisations across 55 countries. The country with the most SAAF-funded organisations is Uganda, with a total of eight grantee partners. SAAF supported a sub-grantee meeting at the end of March to ensure good connections between these organisations.

Thank you to AWAC (Alliance of Women Advocating for Change) for hosting the meeting in Kampala!

“Knowledge shared and relationships strengthened!…(this was) an avenue to share new ideas, experiences, techniques and lasting impact in advancing reproductive health to combat unsafe abortion practices.” AWAC


SAAF board meeting

Thank you to SAAF board members who recently travelled to London for a long overdue in-person meeting! This was the first meeting of the board since Génesis Luigi and Mamello Makhele became co-chairs. Members discussed matters relating to finance, risk assessment and impact, as well as how best to support the work of SAAF. 

To find out more about current SAAF board members (including newest member Bing Parcon, who is not pictured here but attended remotely) check out our website.


SAAF grantee partner spotlight: Di RAMONA

Di RAMONA (Diversidades, Redes de Apoyo para Mujeres y Opciones Neutrogenericas de Acompañamiento AC) has been receiving SAAF funding since October 2022. They are based in Hidalgo, Mexico, where abortion was recently decriminalised up to 12 weeks. However, there are still gaps in provision of services.

Di RAMONA therefore works to increase knowledge of the legal right to safe abortion, and collects complaints about lack of access in order to advocate with the Ministry of Health to ensure improved services. They also provide their own hotline, SRHR services, and train abortion doulas (across Mexico, and other countries) to provide support to those seeking self-managed abortions.

Grantee partners in the news
Las Libres (based in Guanajuato, Mexico)  has featured in a number of international news publications for their work supporting people in the US to access safe abortions. Advocacy Coordinator Verónica Cruz Sánchez was also recently celebrated as one of Time’s Women of the Year!

SAAF grantee partner Nègès Mawon fights to change negative attitudes about abortion in Haiti – you can read more about their amazing work in this recent article.

In Liberia, unsafe abortion is still rife. This article details the important work SAAF grantee partner Community Health Initiative is doing to not only raise awareness but to provide post-abortion treatment and care.

AWAC, a sex-worker led organisation in Uganda, recently gained press coverage for their public march in support of access to safe abortion on International Women’s Day.
Current funding opportunities
Urgent Action Fund – for women’s human rights: applications accepted all year, in any language (forms in English, Arabic & Russian)

Amplify Change Opportunity Grants – up to £75,000 GBP available for civil society organisations in the Global South. Apply by 20 April (English & French)

African Women’s Development Fund – grants for ‘organisations led by women and/gender diverse persons/women living with disabilities, on the African continent’. Apply by 25 April (English & French)

Doria Feminist Fund – grants for feminist organisations in the ‘Middle East and North Africa’ region. Apply by 30 April (English, Arabic & French)

This update is a copy of the most recent SAAF newsletter. See here for versions in French and Spanish. If you are not already on our newsletter mailing list please register here.

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