LOCAL COMMUNITIES ENDURING THE PANDEMIC AND OTHER RELATED CRISES went for the test but all the time, people never wanted to associate with me. I was stigmatized. I thought I would die. When results came, I tested negative. And that’s when people started coming to me.” Atukunda Marion aged 73, mentioned that women lost their lives during the pandemic. She gave two examples: “We also had a number of deaths. One of the women from Wanseko who was tested COVID-19 positive and also had diabetes succumbed to COVID-19 because of lack of care. There was also another case of a woman who delivered from hospital and was denied to come back home because she was suspected to have COVID-19.” Women shared that there was increased economic hardship and an increase in violence against women “Businesses were closed down so many family members were not earning an income. Movement was restricted and therefore we could not sell our agricultural products. We used up all of the capital for the small family business we had of selling fish. There was a high level of domestic violence during the lockdown as we had to spend the day home with our husbands, a situation we weren’t used to prior to the pandemic.” Community responses to the Emyooga Fund One of the government programs initiated to support those affected by loss of incomes and increased economic challenges resulting from COVID-19 lockdowns was the “Emyooga fund” . This included food distribution and support to struggling businesses and individuals. Figure 5: Part of the Cultural troupe that was formed by Kaiso women as an income generating initiative for the group but also a way of sensitizing community about youth, women and environmental rights. Photo taken on 1st October 2021. 23 Research on the Influence of International Financial Institutions on Uganda’s COVID – 19 Recovery Agenda