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Thailand: From​ ​Barriers​ ​to​ ​Bridges:​ ​20-22​ ​September​ ​2017-​ ​Bangkok,​ ​Thailand

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Over the course of three days, 150 delegates from 20 countries in Asia will gather to engage in dialogue, share best practices, and develop road maps for improving trans healthcare in the region. Trans people, civil society, health care providers, and government are represented in each delegation, and will engage in evidence-informed discussions on HIV, health, legal, and human rights issues in regional and national contexts.  

The conference is co-hosted by the Asia Pacific Transgender Network and the Thai Red Cross AIDS Research Centre, with the goal of facilitating dialogue on effective and innovative community-led and healthcare-provider-driven models and strategies to advance transgender health. It is organized in collaboration with United States Agency for International Development (USAID), FHI 360, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) in order to leverage their technical expertise and ongoing support to assist countries in the region in reaching the 90-90-90 targets.

The event is funded by the United States President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) through the USAID LINKAGES Project (implemented by FHI 360), as well as by UNDP and UNAIDS.

Transgender people have a significantly higher risk of HIV infection than the general population in the Asia-Pacific region and globally – the 2016 UNAIDS Prevention Gap Report estimates that, worldwide, transgender women are 49 times more likely to have HIV than the general population. Despite this, trans people face multiple barriers to accessing necessary prevention, care and treatment services, including legal and regulatory barriers, widespread stigma and discrimination, and, in many settings, a lack of trans-sensitive health care providers trained to offer medically appropriate services. Read more via Facebook