American Christian right groups known for opposing LGBTQ+ and reproductive rights have significantly increased spending in Africa since 2019, according to new data from the Institute for Journalism and Social Change (IJSC). .
The funds are expected to support conservative organizations and initiatives aimed at blocking abortion and LGBTQ+ rights across the continent.
In the report, “Following the Money: Inside the US Christian Right’s Spending Boom in Africa,” 17 “anti-rights” and “anti-gender” groups estimate their annual spending in Africa between 2019 and 2022. It has been revealed that the number has increased by approximately 50%. A year in which comprehensive financial records are available.
This surge in funding coincided with intense challenges to abortion rights in the United States, including a Supreme Court case that began in 2021 and culminated in the reversal of Roe v. Wade in 2022.
The report estimates that these organizations have spent more than $70 million in Africa since 2007. A previous study by openDemocracy reported that these groups spent $54 million in Africa between 2007 and 2018.
The secretive Fellowship Foundation, which focuses on evangelism and liaising with politicians, has accounted for about half of the groups’ total spending in Africa in recent years.
According to the New York Times, Ugandan politician David Bahati said discussions with Fellowship members were the inspiration behind the country’s own anti-gay legislation in 2009.
It is noteworthy that three of the 17 organizations are members of Project 2025’s advisory committee. Project 2025 is an initiative aimed at centralizing presidential power and reorganizing the U.S. federal government based on conservative policies if Donald Trump wins the 2024 presidential election.
These groups include the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), known for its legal battles over reproductive rights.
The Southern Poverty Law Center supports ADF’s efforts to recriminalize consensual sex between LGBTQ adults domestically and internationally, defends state-mandated transgender sterilization, and protects LGBTQ individuals from pedophilia. Documented what they claimed was a high trend.
The report’s findings are based on IRS 990 forms filed by U.S.-registered nonprofit organizations and published online. However, these applications provide limited information about where and how funds are allocated within specific African countries.
Increasing funding from Christian Right groups in the United States poses a serious threat to the advancement of LGBTQ rights across Africa. These groups amplify conservative and often discriminatory rhetoric as they direct millions of people into campaigns and partnerships aimed at entrenching anti-LGBTQ and anti-reproductive rights policies.
This financial support could embolden local leaders to pursue policies that strengthen harmful laws, increase social prejudice, and endanger the safety, dignity, and rights of LGBTQ Africans. Unless action is taken and support for local advocates and inclusive policies is strengthened, these impacts could undermine decades of progress on human rights and equality across the continent.
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