Significant strides have been made in project activities in Colombia to address discrimination and gender-based violence (GBV) towards LGBT people, sex workers, and migrants in health care. In the framework of the Iniciativa Bogotá 2.0 project (IB2.0), implemented in collaboration with GIZ Colombia, GOPA supported the Epicentra strategy, jointly implemented by Temblores ONG and Fundacion Lxs Locxs to contribute to the understanding and commitment to change the dynamics of discrimination and GBV. Collaboration with GOPA aimed at integrating the issue of migration into the Epicentra strategy, as access to health care for LGBT migrants is even more restrictive.

Historically marginalised, people with non-normative genders & sexualities face a continuum of violence and discrimination. Studies such as "Qué maricada con nuestros derechos" (2019) and "Sin curas ni remedios" (2021) highlight stark realities: 78% of LGBT individuals surveyed find it difficult to access safe healthcare spaces, and 50% of research participants have avoided health services out of fear of rape or discrimination. Main barriers include gender bias and the failure to guarantee the right to gender identity by not recognising preferred gender names and pronouns.

In Colombia, the LGBT population is subject to special constitutional protection due to the conditions of social vulnerability they live in and violence they are exposed to, compounded by migration and displacement.

Key achievements of the Epicentra strategy include:

• Training 14 trainers from the LGBT community.
• Designing & implementing pedagogical workshops with 122 health sector workers.
• Creating a Gender and Sexuality Kit with legal and pedagogical tools to improve healthcare access for LGBT migrants.
• Providing legal orientation and psychosocial support to nearly 100 individuals.

This work underscores the importance of a community-based approach in conditions of migration to overcoming healthcare barriers for the LGBT community. 

Discover the Botiquín de género y sexualidad para una salud sin barreras, a product of the Epicentra strategy: 

https://www.epicentra.co/_files/ugd/1a8d3d_c24c897bbb3e4e52b00c68ec9baad20c.pdf