Queer Kenyans living with HIV/AIDS face the double burden of stigma and discrimination due to their LGBTQ identities and HIV status.

The National Empowerment Network of People Living with HIV and AIDS in Kenya (NEPHAK)’s latest report notes this reality, while also revealing queer people stigmatize and discriminate against each other because of their HIV status.

The 2024 report titled “People Living with HIV Stigma Index Assessment,” which NEPHAK released on March 3, notes that although stigma and discrimination vary across different populations in Kenya, queer people are more affected because of the double burdens of LGBTQ identities and HIV-positive status.

“For instance, gays or men who have sex with men (MSM) reported feeling marginalized and devalued, often being labelled as immoral and worthless individuals with a bleak future,” states the 78-page report. “They frequently bore the blame for their HIV-positive status and shunned by family, friends, and neighbors who caution their children against associating with them.”

The NEPHAK survey sampled a total of 1,305 people living with HIV/AIDS across the country, of which 322 or 24.6 percent were key populations that include gay men, transgender people, sex workers, and people who inject drugs. Eighty-five of the 322 people from key populations surveyed were gay men, while 60 were trans.

The survey’s 21-member National Steering Committee of which Women Fighting AIDS in Kenya CEO Dorothy Onyango is chair, includes Solomon Wambua of the Key Populations Consortium, Ludfine Bunde from UNAIDS, and Allan Maleche from KELIN Kenya, a group that champions equal access to healthcare for LGBTQ people and others.

The report’s general findings note that HIV-related stigma and discrimination remain a concern in Kenya, with low HIV disclosure levels within the family. For instance, it reveals 56 percent of respondents confirmed their spouses knew their HIV status, while only 28.7 said their children knew. The survey also notes roughly half of respondents said their partners were HIV positive, whereas 36.5 percent said their partners are negative.  

With regards to HIV testing, 62.5 percent of respondents voluntarily chose to get tested while 97.2 percent of respondents said they were on HIV treatment.  

The report also states 15.3 percent of respondents had their HIV status revealed to others by healthcare workers without their consent at healthcare facilities. Twenty-nine percent said they were unsure if their medical records are kept confidential.

The survey lists discriminatory remarks from other people at 27.8 percent, discriminatory comments from family members and friends at 24 percent, and verbal harassment at 22 percent as the top three HIV-related stigma and discrimination that people living with the virus face.

“As recounted by people living with HIV who participated in the 2024 Stigma Index study, there is no way the country will deliver on the 95.95.95 HIV Treatment targets and join the world in the path to end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030 if HIV-related stigma and discrimination is not tackled,” Onyango.

She reiterated HIV-related stigma and discrimination continue to hamper HIV prevention efforts, treatment, and care interventions in all of Kenya’s 47 counties and among all populations.

“Stigma experienced by adolescent girls and young women and key populations, whether sex workers, men who have sex with men, transgender persons and people who inject drugs/ people who use drugs, remain high,” Onyango stated.

The stigma breakdown for key populations by the report reveals 48.3 percent of trans people reported experiencing verbal harassment, 31.7 percent reported instances of blackmail, and 28.3 percent admitted they do not seek health care. Another 36.7 percent of respondents said their families discriminate against the because of their gender identity. Of the 60 trans people surveyed, 41, or 68.3 percent, said they belong to a network or support group for trans people.

Almost half, or 48.2 percent, of the 85 gay people surveyed said they experience verbal harassment and 50 percent indicated family and friends discriminate against them. Another 39.5 percent said they are afraid to seek health care; 38.8 percent avoided seeking medical treatment due to concerns about their identity being exposed, while 81.2 percent said they belong to an MSM network.

“Many MSM felt compelled to conceal their identity and remained closeted, further isolating themselves from support networks. These discriminatory attitudes also deterred MSM from seeking essential healthcare services, as they feared judgement and condemnation,” reads the report.

It further notes MSM basic rights are frequently disregarded or denied, making them vulnerable to verbal and physical assaults, insecure, and marginalized. Religious communities also promote stigma that further isolates gay people and contributes to their isolation.

“I have experienced discrimination and stigma in church where the MSM have been branded evil and linked to sin. We have been called purveyors of immorality and disease by pastors,” an unnamed MSM from Mombasa told NEPHAK researchers. “Additionally, there have been instances of discrimination among my MSM friends who are HIV negative, for example, when they refuse to share drinks with those of us who are HIV positive.”

Another MSM living with HIV noted disclosing his status is very difficult and their family and community because of stigma, even from a partner.

“It happened that I went to a certain facility and one of the health workers said to me, the activities you engage in (having sex with fellow men) should be prayed for so that you stop as they are putting you at risk,” they told NEPHAK researchers.  

Some MSM living with HIV, however, noted joining support groups after they learned their status has had a positive impact.  

“Meeting up with people who have the same status has been comforting,” one MSM told NEPHAK researchers. “This is because we get to share our ideas and experiences, as well as give each other advice on how to live positively.

The report urges relevant organizations and the Key Population Consortium to create awareness campaigns to tackle stigma and discrimination against queer people with HIV/AIDS. It also calls for households, communities, and relevant institutions to become more sensitive to the promotion and protection of the rights of people living with HIV/AIDS and working with religious leaders to address HIV-related stigma and discrimination.

The report further urges relevant health institutions and partner organizations to expand knowledge of the law, privacy and confidentiality among officials, administrators, clergy, and the general public.

InterPride on Wednesday issued a travel advisory for transgender and nonbinary people who want to travel to the U.S. for this year’s WorldPride.

“Due to an executive order issued by the U.S. president on Jan. 20, all travelers must select either ‘male’ or ‘female’ when applying for entry or visas. The gender listed at birth will be considered valid,” reads the advisory that InterPride posted on its Facebook page. “If your passport has ‘X’ as a gender marker or differs from your birth-assigned gender, we strongly recommend contacting the U.S. diplomatic mission before traveling to confirm entry requirements.”

WorldPride is scheduled to take place in D.C. from May 17-June 8.

InterPride is the organization that coordinates WorldPride events. The Capital Pride Alliance is the local host.

“With WorldPride Washington, DC 2025 coming up, we’re working on a guide and will share updates soon,” reads InterPride’s advisory.

President Donald Trump’s anti-transgender executive orders have sparked growing concern among governments and advocacy groups around the world.

Germany’s Federal Foreign Office last week issued a travel advisory for trans and nonbinary people who are planning to visit the U.S. It specifically notes Trump’s executive order that bans the State Department from issuing passports with “X” gender markers.

“The relevant gender identity of the applicant at the time of birth is the relevant one,” reads the advisory. “Travelers who have the ‘X’ gender marker or whose current gender entry differs from their gender identity at birth should contact the relevant U.S. diplomatic mission in Germany before entering the country and find out the applicable entry requirements.”

Egale Canada, one of Canada’s largest LGBTQ advocacy organizations, on Feb. 6 announced its members will not attend WorldPride and any other event in the U.S. because of the Trump-Vance administration’s policies.

Capital Pride told the Washington Blade it is working with InterPride on the guide it mentioned in its advisory.

The German government has issued a travel advisory for transgender and nonbinary people who are planning to visit the U.S.

The Rheinische Post, a German newspaper, reported the advisory the German Federal Foreign Office issued on March 5 specifically notes President Donald Trump’s executive order that bans the State Department from issuing passports with “X” gender markers.

“The relevant gender identity of the applicant at the time of birth is the relevant one,” reads the German Federal Foreign Office advisory. “Travelers who have the ‘X’ gender marker or whose current gender entry differs from their gender identity at birth should contact the relevant U.S. diplomatic mission in Germany before entering the country and find out the applicable entry requirements.”

Germany’s Gender Self-Determination Act, which allows trans, nonbinary, and intersex people to legally change their name and gender through a simple declaration at a registrar’s office and then waiting three months, took effect last November.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio in response to Trump’s executive order directed State Department personnel to “suspend any application requesting an ‘X’ sex marker and do not take any further action pending additional guidance from the department.”

Trump on Feb. 5 issued an executive order that bans trans women and girls from female sports teams. The Guardian reported Rubio later instructed American consular officials to deny visas in “cases where applicants are suspected of misrepresenting their purpose of travel or sex”

“You should consider whether this misrepresentation is material such that it supports an ineligibility finding,” wrote Rubio in the Feb. 24 directive the Guardian said it obtained.

The newspaper further reported the directive directs consulate officials “to issue permanent visa bans against those who are deemed to misrepresent their birth sex on visa applications,” and to “apply Immigration and Nationality Act section 212(a)(6)(C)i) — the ‘permanent fraud bar’ — against trans applicants.”

“Unlike regular visa denials, this section triggers lifetime exclusion from the United States with limited waiver possibilities,” notes the Guardian.

A group of trans and nonbinary people last month filed a federal lawsuit against Trump’s passport directive.

The Lesbian and Gay Federation of Germany, a German LGBTQ and intersex rights group known by the acronym LSVD, in response to the Washington Blade’s request for comment on the German government’s travel advisory said it “strongly condemns the Trump administration’s latest attack on transgender and nonbinary people.”

“By erasing legal recognition of trans identities and forcing all official documents to reflect only sex assigned at birth, the U.S. government is actively endangering the rights and safety of trans and nonbinary individuals,” said LSVD in a statement. “The German government’s travel advisory warning trans and nonbinary travelers of potential entry issues is a necessary step — but it cannot be the only response.”

LSVD added Germany and the European Union “must make it clear: LGBTQ+ people are safe in the EU, and we will not tolerate the rollback of fundamental human rights anywhere in the world.”

“Our commitment to human rights must also be reflected in foreign policy,” said LSVD. “This includes using diplomatic channels to demand that the U.S. government respects trans rights, ensuring protections for asylum seekers, and strengthening international alliances to push back against anti-LGBTQ+ extremism.”

“The LSVD⁺ calls on the German government and EU institutions to take a firm stance and oppose these policies with all available means,” added the advocacy group in its statement. “Democracy and human rights cannot be selectively defended — when trans rights are attacked, all human rights are at risk.”