UK Backs the Global Forum on MSM & HIV in Launch of
International Advocacy Campaign

Ambitious new program will advocate to governments, multi-laterals and major donors for universal coverage of HIV programming for men who have sex with men

Los Angeles, Calif., September 3, 2009 -- In an effort to combat soaring HIV rates among gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (MSM) in developing countries, the United Kingdom's Department for International Development (DFID) has awarded US$1.2 million over three years to the Global Forum on MSM and HIV (MSMGF). This funding will support the MSMGF in implementing a new international advocacy strategy promoting equitable access for MSM to effective HIV prevention, care and treatment services.

MSM are 19 times more likely to be infected with HIV than the general population in low- and middle-income countries. Despite this fact, less than two percent of global funding for HIV-related programming is directed at MSM.

"While the need for action is clear, in many places MSM are simply not a priority. In fact, last year, more than 90 countries failed to report any data on the number of MSM reached by prevention efforts in their evaluations to the UN," said George Ayala, the MSMGF's Executive Officer.

"Entrenched prejudice and stigma, the criminalization of male-to-male sex and a lack of available advocacy tools for MSM all contribute to an environment where it is easier for decision-makers to just look the other way," he added.

To address these barriers, the MSMGF will create best practice documents on effective HIV programs for MSM, write policy briefs on global access to MSM-targeted services, develop advocacy trainings for MSM activists, raise awareness of key MSM priority issues among policy-makers, donors and government officials, and foster collaborations between complementary organizations working on HIV, human rights and MSM health in different parts of the world.

Governed by a steering committee of 20 internationally recognized advocates and HIV professionals, the MSMGF is the only global MSM body whose members and leadership are predominantly from the Global South. Not only does this help the Forum give voice to those often left out of the global AIDS dialogue, it also uniquely positions the organization to work with southern regional MSM networks in the development of shared advocacy strategies.

"We have taken care to design a strategy that is nuanced enough to apply in countries with concentrated epidemics, like China and Mexico, as well as those with generalized epidemics like those found in Sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean," said MSMGF Co-Chair Robert Carr, who is also Executive Director of the Caribbean Vulnerable Communities Coalition.

"It is our hope that these efforts will result in expanded coverage of quality HIV-related services for MSM in all regions, particularly those in the Global South."

The Global Forum on MSM & HIV (MSMGF) is a network of community-based organizations, AIDS service organizations, MSM groups and other agencies that works at the global, regional and national level to advocate for improved HIV programming for MSM. With a Steering Committee of 20 members from 17 countries in the Global South and North, and a secretariat currently hosted at AIDS Project Los Angeles, the MSMGF is committed to responding to HIV/AIDS among men who have sex with men through advocacy, information exchange/knowledge production, network development and programs that promote human rights and support the empowerment of MSM around the world.