As Pride Month is celebrated around the world, LGBTQ+ organizations in Kenya are facing their toughest period in years, as major US funding cuts have disrupted services that many in the community depend on.
John Mathenge, director of Health Options for Young Men on HIV/AIDS/STIs (HOYMAS), told DW that the organization runs three facilities in Nairobi (Kenya’s capital), Kajiado (Rift Valley) and Nyeri (central Kenya).
These centers serve LGBTQ+ people and other key populations, including men who have sex with men (MSM), sex workers, people who inject drugs, and transgender individuals. “Pride means a lot to all of us as LGBTI persons in Kenya and globally, and Pride Month is a month we should always be proud of, but yet we have not been able to do so due to funding cuts from USAID,” Mathenge said.
The disruption followed stop-work orders issued by the partners in response to US funding cuts.
“You can imagine, in Nairobi, we had about 25 staff and 110 volunteers, and we had to lay off all of them,” he said. math estimation Hoymas Lost more than half its funding. “We [are] Actually working on a small budget right now. “I think we lost about 60% of the funding that we used to get from various partners,” he said.
Mathenge says difficult compromises are needed to maintain services but he stresses that limited support from Kenya’s social health authority has helped.
“The little money we get for primary health care is what we pay our doctors, like three volunteers, to make sure that with that little, little money we can also buy some medicines,” Mathenge said.
Yet, outreach, health care worker training, violence reporting, and peer tutor programs have been severely underfunded.
“Actually, it affected me mentally, seeing that the community, the peer-educated volunteers, not even being able to access the small, tiny funding that they used to get, some of our staff are now on the streets,” he said.
Clinics keeping open in Kenya despite deep cutbacks
Unlike some groups that withdrew or closed down, HOYMAS decided to continue operating.
“Facilities are still open. We have not closed any facilities, and we have tried to pool our resources from individual philanthropy in Kenya to ensure that our community can access services,” Mathenge said.
For Kevin, a university student in Nairobi, the impact was immediate. “In the past, I relied on community organizations for access to counseling sessions, health information and condoms. Since funding cuts began to impact some programs, access to those services has become less accessible and sometimes difficult to access,” he told DW.
“There were times when supplies ran low, forcing people to look elsewhere or go without the resources they previously relied on.” Yet he emphasizes the community’s resilience.
“People see funding cuts and assume everything has stopped. That’s not the case. We’re still in love, going to work, paying rent, and taking care of each other. We’re still here, still bickering and still moving forward. Funding may be down, but our lives didn’t stop when the grants went down. If anything, we’ve learned that resilience isn’t something that donors give us; it’s something that comes our way. Has always been close.”
Beyond health care: trust, safety, and everyday life in the LGBTQ+ community
For many, its impact extends far beyond medical services. Sharon, a Nairobi resident, says community organizations provide safety and respect, which are often missing elsewhere.
She said, “One of the biggest changes I’ve noticed is that access to health care support has become more difficult. Like many LGBTQ+ people, I often feel more comfortable receiving services through community organizations because they understand our experiences and treat us with respect.”
“As funding shortfalls have impacted some programs, access to some services and referrals has become difficult.” Fear of stigma and discrimination remains a barrier to mainstream health care.
Sharon said, “Many people believe that you can simply go to any hospital, but this is not always the reality. Some people fear discrimination or judgment when seeking treatment, which is why community-based support has been so important.”
His perspective also highlighted the normality of LGBTQ+ individuals. “I have a girlfriend, and at the end of the day, our relationship looks a lot less dramatic than people imagine. We argue about money, complain about work, decide what to eat for dinner, and worry about the future just like any other couple,” he said.
“The funny thing is that some people are upset that I love another woman, but I have no problem denying myself services that help keep me healthy and informed. It’s never meant anything to me.”
The struggle for solutions and sustainability in HIV prevention
Mathenge warns that service gaps are widening, especially in HIV prevention. “I do a lot of advocacy with the government to make sure that the little drugs that are in government facilities, I actually borrow them to make sure that our clinics get running and to make sure that we maintain our clinics,” he said.
The crisis has also driven demand for new funding models. Mercy, a Nairobi-based entrepreneur, says business support programs have declined. “Those programs made a real difference for people trying to become economically independent,” he told DW.
“I have had to rely more on social media and word-of-mouth marketing to grow my business. Also, I think this is an opportunity for organizations to focus more on economic empowerment projects that can help people generate their own income rather than relying solely on donation-funded programs.”
Mathenz agrees. Advocating income-generating initiatives, he said, “For me, I would appeal, and I would tell donors who want to fund the community. Please fund community-led organizations. The community makes a difference.”
“We fund community income-generating activity, so that even if we don’t have any money tomorrow, we still have something where we can get money from, like an income-generating activity that goes back into the community,” he said.
He’s also seeking support beyond traditional American donors.
“We [are] There are also appeals to other partners in different countries where people promote human rights, like in Europe and other countries, where people know that we are human beings and we cannot be abandoned. “You know, don’t leave anyone behind,” he said.
For many, the future depends on diversification support. “I don’t think the answer is to just wait for donors to return,” Sharon said. “Community organisations, government institutions and private companies all have a role to play. If aid services are left entirely to foreign donors, people become vulnerable whenever funding priorities change.”
Even months after losing most of their funding, organizations like HOYMAS remain open. Funding may have diminished, but for Kenya’s LGBTQ+ community, the resolve to endure remains strong.
Edited by: Crispin Mavakideau