Let communities lead: HIV law and policy reform by and for key populations in Latin America and the Caribbean

New SCALE Initiative grants supporting key population-led organizations in Guyana, Jamaica and Panama

November 29, 2023

For more than forty years, communities have been at the forefront of advocating for rights-based HIV/AIDS responses, equitable treatment access and the fight against stigma and discrimination. In Latin America and the Caribbean, regional and national key population groups remain critical partners in reaching underserved populations and challenging harmful laws, policies and social norms.

Acknowledging their contribution, UNDP just announced US$1 million in Law & Access grants through the SCALE Initiative to key population-led organizations around the world – three of the grants are in Latin America and the Caribbean. The Law & Access grants support organizations led by and for people living with HIV and key populations to counter discriminatory and punitive laws, policies and practices and HIV-related criminalization on the pathway to achieving the 10-10-10 targets.

In Latin America and the Caribbean, key populations are not benefiting equally from advances in the response, with HIV prevalence significantly higher than in the general population in part due to stigma, discrimination and harmful laws and policies. Enabling environments, grounded in evidence- and rights-based laws help remove barriers to access HIV prevention, treatment and care services.

The Caribbean is making significant progress in curbing numbers of new HIV infections and AIDS-related death. Advances has also been seen in creating enabling legal environments, in 2022, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados and Saint Kitts and Nevis struck down colonial-era laws that criminalized sex between consenting adult same-sex partners. On the other hand, progress across Latin America remains uneven. Numbers of AIDS-related deaths have decreased by 32% since 2010, but annual numbers of new HIV infections have increased by 8%.

Queering Constitutional Law: Increasing LGBTQ+ Voices in Constitutional Reform Agenda
A SCALE Grantee, Equality for all Foundation Jamaica is undertaking an initiative that is both strategic and timely. Jamaica, like some other countries in the region, is undergoing a Constitution Review process. Such processes are typically accompanied by community consultations. To ensure that issues related to sexual orientation and gender identity and expression are addressed it will be important to ensure the participation of LGBTQ+ people in the constitutional reform processes. The project involves a legal literacy campaign focused on the relevance and impact of Jamaica’s current constitutional reform on LGBTQ+ Jamaicans as well as community consultations to ascertain the views of the LGBTQ+ community during the phase of reform which seeks to amend Jamaica’s Charter of fundamental rights and freedoms. Through this initiative, the Foundation ultimately aims to establish a five-year strategic plan which focuses on increased political engagement.

For more information on Equality for all Foundation, visit their website.

Legal accompaniment to the LGBTIQ+ population and incidence in inclusive public policies in Panama
Through their SCALE Initiative Law & Access grant, Fundación Iguales seeks to continue, expand, strengthen and formalize the work they have already initiated to provide legal support to the LGBTIQ+ community and to advocate for inclusive public policies in Panama. This includes continuing to help other transgender organizations to get legal status, expanding legal aid and formalizing long-term legal aid for LGBTIQ+ people from allied lawyers, public-facing workshops and strategic litigation.

For more information on Fundación Iguales, visit their website.

Moving Beyond the Horizon for Inclusion: Empowering Key Populations to Scale Up the HIV Response through Evidence-Based Advocacy for the Removal of Legal Barriers to HIV Services in Guyana

Proud to be Trans and Guyana Trans United are collaborating through their Law & Access grant to empower men who have sex with men and transgender people on their basic human rights and legal pathways to advocate for legal reform in accessing HIV services. The organizations are conducting a series of workshops in four administrative regions, covering human rights, access of rights and legal pathways, with additional workshops on linking legal name change, legal gender recognition and access to HIV and health care and services. It is expected that findings from these activities will inform the creation of a high-level policy advocacy plan.

For more information on Proud to Be Trans, visit their website.
For more information on Guyana Trans United, visit their website.

Underpinning these grants is UNDP’s commitment to strengthening the leadership of people living with HIV and key populations on the pathway to law reform, recognizing the critical role that affected communities have always played and continue to play in the HIV response. On this World AIDS Day 2023 and all days, we amplify the call to let communities lead while working to further strengthen their efforts, scale what works and leave no one behind