Iceland joins Denmark and Sweden in the Multi-Donor ‘SAY Plus+ Programme’ Partnership to Strengthen Sexual and Reproductive Health for Adolescents and Women, including Obstetric Fistula Care, with over eleven billion shillings (USD 3 million investment)
The Government of Iceland and UNFPA have today signed a three-million-dollar agreement to support the Strengthening Adolescents and Youth Empowerment and Rights (SAY Plus+) Programme.
The programme is led by the Government of Uganda through the Ministry of Health, with UNFPA serving as the managing and technical agency.
The signing ceremony took place today at the UNFPA Uganda office, where the Head of Mission of the Embassy of Iceland, Hildigunnur Engilbertsdótti, signed on behalf of the Government of Iceland, and UNFPA Representative in Uganda, Ms Kristine Blokhus, signed on behalf of UNFPA.
This function was witnessed by the Ministry of Health officials and members of the Health Development Partners group.
The SAY Plus+ Programme is designed to scale impact in Uganda’s underserved regions, specifically Acholi, West Nile, Bukedi, Karamoja, and Busoga.
Iceland’s funding will provide a holistic, rights-based continuum of care, moving beyond episodic medical interventions toward sustainable health systems.
According to a project brief, the core mission of the programme is to address the “Triple threat” facing Ugandan youth: teenage pregnancies, new HIV infection, and sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV).
It is aimed at ensuring that every young person has the power to make choices about their body and future. It targets the West Nile, Acholi, Karamoja, and Eastern Uganda, some of the poorest regions.
Iceland officially joins the governments of Denmark and Sweden in the SAY Plus+ multi-donor programme.
The partnership reinforces a unified commitment to Uganda’s underserved regions by leveraging a pooled financing framework to ensure scalability, sustainability, and greater government ownership.
By aligning with other key development partners, Iceland’s contribution strengthens a coordinated effort to streamline sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) interventions across the country.
A critical component of this Icelandic funding is the proactive mapping and surgical repair of obstetric fistula, a devastating childbirth injury caused by prolonged, obstructed labour without timely medical intervention.
It leaves women with a hole between the birth canal and the bladder or rectum, resulting in chronic and disabling medical issues, social exclusion, and deepening poverty.
The programme will strengthen prevention, early identification, referral, timely surgical repair, and social reintegration of survivors, ensuring that women regain health, dignity, and economic participation. These activities build on several years of previous Icelandic support, which has impacted the lives of countless women and young girls.
“Fistula happens when a health system lacks the capacity to meet the full spectrum of reproductive health needs of women and girls. It is a human rights and a gender equality issue, and that is why Iceland has been proud to support fistula programming for several years,” said Hildigunnur Engilbertsdóttir, Iceland Head of Mission to Uganda.
“As we now join with Sweden and Denmark in the SAY Plus+ programme, we are confident that our investment in fistula prevention, timely surgical repair, and social reintegration will continue to enhance health outcomes for women and girls in Uganda’s most underserved sub-regions and districts,” she added.
“The SAY Plus+ Programme is our flagship programme to support the health and rights of vulnerable adolescents, young people, and women in Uganda. By bringing together several development partners on one platform, we can deliver a more coordinated and cost-effective intervention, and we are thrilled to have Iceland on board.
The support of the Government of Iceland is rooted in a deep commitment to gender equality and the rights of women and girls, and we are immensely grateful for their longstanding partnership”, said Kristine Blokhus, UNFPA Representative in Uganda.
The SAY Plus+ Programme aims to expand sexuality education and economic empowerment, partnering with community leaders to address harmful gender norms and reduce fistula and GBV stigma, and improving integrated and inclusive sexual and reproductive health, HIV, and gender-based violence services, including fistula care at all levels.
Dr. Richard Mugahi, the Commissioner for Reproductive and Child Health at the Ministry of Health, welcomed the new partnership, saying it fills a crucial gap left by the closure of USAID.
The Ministry of Health will provide overall coordination for the SAY Plus+ Programme, with UNFPA serving as the technical lead. The programme is a direct contribution to Uganda’s Human Capital Development goals under the National Development Plan IV and aligns with Sustainable Development Goals 3, 5, and 10. URN