This November the world watched as America went to the polls in a pivotal election that would reverberate far beyond American borders. The stakes were extraordinarily high for the Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights (SRHR) of women and girls across the world; with the imminent reenactment of deleterious health policies that advance punitive funding cuts and extreme restrictions that will result in the return to service disruptions and unmet needs,including in Africa. Our worst fears have come to life.
Trump’s re-election is not just another news headline — it is a wake-up call; a paradigm shift signaling an urgent need to act, innovate, and secure our hard-won gains. We know what happened last time. We felt the impact of his policies, from the Global Gag Rule which stifled critical services, to funding cuts to UNFPA, leaving countless women and girls vulnerable.
As a major player in global reproductive health programs and policies in Africa including family planning, HIV, maternal and child health and humanitarian assistance, the health, and lives of hundreds of millions of women and girls around the globe were impacted. The Geneva Consensus Declaration, a dangerous imperialist piece of paper, non-binding at best and confusing at worst, was also signed under the guise of “protecting women’s health.”
Disguised as an effort to promote women’s health and strengthen families, it undermines the reproductive autonomy of women and girls by rejecting abortion as an essential component of health care. Critics rightly condemn it as a politically driven initiative that contradicts global commitments to comprehensive reproductive health and the rights of women.
Today, the global SRHR landscape faces even greater pressure with the rise of right-wing colonialist ideologies. Project 2025, an ultra-conservative roadmap which proposes policy changes across numerous areas is likely to inform Trump’s domestic and foreign policy. Measures range from restricting abortion access to censoring classroom discussions on gender and pushing back on LGBTQ and trans rights. The result is more funding restrictions for critical SRHR programs, and the proliferation of policies that prioritize ideologically driven agendas over evidence-based care. This resurgence of regressive politics is a test of resilience and a stark reminder that Africa must solidify its autonomy in safeguarding reproductive health and rights.
When Trump first took office in 2017, his strategies and domestic funding in Africa as services were disrupted, partnerships strained, and the lives of the most vulnerable and marginalized affected. But we learned a vital lesson: we cannot afford to let external political tides dictate the reproductive futures of our people. The SheDecides movement was born as a result, first as a galvanizing call for global action to close the funding gap and later growing into a global political movement fighting for a world where every woman, girl and young person can choose. It was clear then, and even clearer now — we need African solutions driven by African voices. In the aftermath of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, key actors in the African SRHR landscape began to ask tough questions: “What does this mean for Africa? How do we protect our progress? What else is coming?” These conversations led to a vision: to create an alliance dedicated to upholding and expanding abortion rights across the continent, and CATALYSTS was born not just as a response, but as our new normal.
CATALYSTS is more than an alliance; it is a statement, and a community of the brave committed to reproductive justice. We drew inspiration from movements like LGBTQ advocacy, The Ouagadougou Partnership, and the Green Wave in Latin America. These collective efforts proved that when voices unite, barriers can be dismantled and remind us that externally driven solutions can no longer be our strategy if we want to act boldly. This means investing in African research institutions, expanding collaborative networks to amplify our collective strength, and inviting more voices and perspectives. It also calls for governments to prioritize domestic health funding that safeguards SRHR, reduce reliance on volatile foreign politics and own their reproductive health agendas by crafting policies that reflect our priorities.
Perhaps this unfortunate shift is also an opportunity for African governments to leverage existing instruments on the continent that guarantee and safeguard SRHR. The Maputo Protocol is one of such groundbreaking tools which, if fully integrated into national laws, governments can ensure that reproductive rights are protected by domestic frameworks, independent of external political influences.
At the regional level, international development actors must also move away from working in siloes as the challenges we face are too complex and resources too limited for fragmented efforts. Collaborative, multi-sectoral partnerships will be essential to build resilient SRHR systems capable of withstanding external shocks and sustaining progress. Finally, the continuous leveraging of high-level policy spaces such as the African Union, regional economic communities, and global platforms offers more strategic entry points to amplify African-led initiatives, foster peer learning, and ensure that African voices shape the global reproductive rights agenda. These approaches not only strengthen legal protections but also underscore Africa’s commitment to self-reliance and sovereignty in health policy.
At this critical juncture where far-right political ideologies are gaining ground against reproductive rights, we need courage, collaboration, and an unwavering belief in our collective power to thrive. But this time, we are prepared to do more than react—we are ready to lead.
Mallah is the SRHR Lead at IPPF Africa Regional Office where she supports the growth and development of Member Associations and the strategic direction and leadership on SRHR. She also helps MAs drive sustainable, innovative and cost-effective strategies to deliver quality, rights based and comprehensive SRHR information, services and programmes in the region.