The United States has withdrawn support for antiretroviral treatments in Africa, which now risks a new epidemic with millions of deaths. The Rainbow Fund supports a clinic that offers HIV-positive people the life-saving medication.

In Uganda, homosexuality is illegal, with penalties ranging from ten years in prison to life imprisonment, and in some cases even the death penalty. The law criminalizing same-sex relations, introduced in 2023, has led to a sharp increase in stigma, harassment, arbitrary arrests, and violence against LGBTQ people and the organizations that support them. Organizations that provided legal support, mental-health services, and sexual health care have been subjected to raids or forced to close, leaving many without secure access to care. LGBTQ people living with HIV have long been excluded from government services and are entirely dependent on civil society. In turn, LGBTQ organizations are highly reliant on international funding to implement their programs.When U.S. development aid was cut in 2025, the most vulnerable were left completely without life-saving support.The Rainbow Fund will collaborate with one of the severely affected organizations, which has provided essential care through its community clinic since 2012. The clinic offers HIV testing, STI screening and treatment, follow-up care, PrEP (both injectable and oral), as well as mental-health support led by a clinical psychologist. Due to the current budget cuts, the organization no longer receives the support needed to maintain its operations. Peer educators and healthcare staff are working without pay, and shrinking global funding streams place both the clinic—and the community members who depend on it—in serious jeopardy. This creates urgent challenges for sustaining care and preventing further spread of HIV.

Situationen i Kenya är mycket hård. Samkönade relationer är kriminaliserade, hatkampanjer från politiska och religiösa aktörer ökar, och regnbågspersoner utsätts för våld, utpressning, vräkningar och ”outing”.

GALCK+ är Kenyas nationella paraplyorganisation för över 20 hbtqi-ledda grupper och har sedan 2006 arbetat för att stärka rättigheter, säkerhet och hälsa för hbtqi-personer i hela landet. Organisationen bygger kapacitet hos sina medlemsorganisationer, skapar allianser med myndigheter och civilsamhälle, och leder nationell samordning av hbtqi-frågor. Trots ett hårt motstånd har GALCK+ lyckats bygga upp starka skyddsnät. Deras akuta säkerhetsinsatser stödjerhundratals personer varje år och deras program för psykiskt stöd har gett tusentals terapisessioner som hjälpt communityt att återhämta sig.

Regnbågsfondens stöd till GALCK+ fokuserar på två akuta behov: säkerhetsarbetet genom 29 lokala säkerhetsresponsgrupper som snabbt rycker in vid hot, attacker eller förföljelse, och psykologiskt stöd genom professionell krishjälp, rådgivning och uppföljning för dem som utsatts för våld eller trakasserier.

Målet är att öka säkerheten, stärka återhämtningen och bygga långsiktiga community-ledda skyddssystem i ett samhälle där hbtqi-personers livsutrymme snabbt krymper.

Blue Diamond Society (BDS) is Nepal’s first and largest LGBTQI-led organization, founded in 2001. They work nationally with 35 local groups to strengthen the rights, health and safety of LGBTQI people. BDS provides HIV prevention, legal support, mental health counseling, humanitarian aid and advocacy. They have been instrumental in getting LGBTQI rights included in Nepal’s constitution and have played an important role in obtaining the historic court decision that opened up same-sex marriage registrations.

Despite this, LGBTQI people in Nepal still face serious discrimination, lack of access to healthcare, threats, violence and obstacles in dealing with authorities. Implementation of laws is slow, and resistance from the anti-gender movement is growing.

The project, which BDS is implementing with support from the Rainbow Fund, will strengthen security, rights and community support through training for politicians and authorities, increased security for both the organization and the community, campaigns that address hate and disinformation, legal and psychological support for victims, local mobilization in all seven provinces of Nepal, as well as documentation and storytelling for increased visibility. The goal is to improve security, strengthen resilience and create positive change in a political climate where LGBTQI rights are under increasing attack.

The Initiative for Equal Rights (TIERs) is one of Nigeria’s leading LGBTQI organizations. Since 2005, they have built a strong model for rights work through legal advocacy, research, advocacy, and community-driven programs.

TIERs defends hundreds of LGBTQI people in court each year, provides over 5,000 people with access to inclusive healthcare and mental health, and campaigns that reach millions of people. Through training, media programs, and emergency support efforts, thousands of LGBTQI people have been given protection, security, and the opportunity to earn a living. They have also strengthened alliances with national actors and documented over a decade of human rights violations, contributing to policy change.

In Nigeria, LGBTQI people live with systematic violence, discrimination, and criminalization, particularly through the same-sex prohibition act, which is used to justify abuse, extortion, and denial of care. Between 2021 and 2024, TIER documented

over 2,600 violations – the highest number in ten years. The need for legal support, security, care and shelter is urgent.

At the same time, a clear effect is seen from TIERS’ long-term work to document human rights violations and raise facts in the public domain. In 2024, TIERS conducted a national attitude survey on the view of LGBTQI people in Nigeria. The results show a clear, albeit slow, change: support for criminalization has decreased from 92% in 2013 to 66% in 2024. In addition, 42% of those surveyed stated that acceptance had increased over the past five years.

The Rainbow Fund and TIERS partnership funds salaries for key staff such as lawyers, healthcare professionals, social workers, researchers and human rights officers – roles that are crucial for the organization to provide emergency support, legal aid and protection, offer inclusive care and mental health support, document abuse and conduct advocacy, create new narratives that counter stigma, strengthen LGBTQI people’s livelihoods and build long-term sustainability in partnership with national authorities.

TIER’s work improves lives, strengthens the movement and pushes for real social change in one of the world’s most risky contexts for LGBTQI people.

In Türkiye, 2025 has been declared the “Year of the Family” by the ruling coalition — a campaign that portrays LGBTQI+ communities as “deviants” threatening traditional values. Through hostile rhetoric, banned Prides and other peaceful demonstrations, intimidation of human rights defenders, and repeated attempts to pass restrictive laws, the government has deepened repression. Existing regulations are already being used to restrict LGBTQI+ organizations from operating freely, accessing funding, and advocating for equality and human rights.

Despite this increasingly hostile environment, organizations like SPoD continue to provide vital support, safe spaces, and services for LGBTQI+ people in Türkiye — and to speak out against injustice. SPoD, one of the country’s leading LGBTQI+ organizations, has a strong record in advocacy, research, and community empowerment.

Since 2022, Regnbågsfonden (Rainbow Fund) and SPoD have partnered to strengthen Türkiye’s LGBTQI+ communities amid mounting restrictions. The collaboration has resulted in SpoD’s delivery of emergency relief, capacity-building, and advocacy initiatives — including responses to the 2023 earthquake.

The current project – funded by Sida and Rainbow Fund - aims to strengthen the financial and institutional resilience of SpoD’s partner organisations in Türkiye through developing a shared safe workspace to sustain operations, joint capacity strengthening and focus on data-driven advocacy to counter Anti-LGBTQI narratives and discriminatory policies.

In the face of growing criminalization and hate-fueled rhetoric, this project helps ensure that Türkiye’s LGBTQI+ organizations can continue to survive, collaborate, and defend equality and human rights for their communities.

Across Central America, LGBTQ+ people continue to face extreme violence, discrimination, and impunity. In Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala, hate crimes and murders remain alarmingly high—often without justice. Political repression and daily discrimination force many to flee in search of safety and dignity. For many, Costa Rica has become a rare refuge: a country with relative stability, stronger institutions, and access to education and healthcare. Yet LGBTQ+ migrants and refugees still face exclusion, xenophobia, and barriers to work and protection. 

IRCA Casabierta is Costa Rica’s only organization dedicated to protecting and empowering LGBTQ+ migrants and refugees. Founded in 2013, it combines human rights advocacy with psychosocial, legal, and employment support. The organization runs the country’s only LGBTQ+ Employment Office (in partnership with the Ministry of Labor), provides legal and mental health assistance to hundreds of displaced people, and promotes inclusion through advocacy and partnerships. 

The current project strengthens IRCA Casabierta’s capacity by expanding employment training, legal aid, and mental health services; maintaining safe facilities and key staff; and advancing advocacy for displaced LGBTQ+ people. The funding helps secure the continuity of core programs and long-term resilience at a time when international support for LGBTQ+ and migration work in Latin America is rapidly shrinking. From Costa Rica, IRCA Casabierta not only provides lifesaving assistance but also builds inclusive, community-led models that inspire change across the region.