| Overview : Procurement Notice The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) hereby requests offer from interested Individual Consultant to undertake the following: (a) Strengthen CSO Capacity to engage in Social Contracting as part of the National HIV Response (b) Produce Being LGBTI+ in Guyana Research and Dialogue Reports Please refer to the website http://www.gy.undp.org for the complete letter of offer these assignments. Applications, along with the relevant documents outlined in the TORs, must be submitted online to procurement.gy@undp.org by 26 October 2020 on or before 11:00 hrs. Background Strengthen CSO Capacity to engage in Social Contracting as part of the National HIV Response Based on the Sustainability Plan for the National HIV Programme, the Ministry of Health is working towards the full national ownership of the HIV response. Given the decline in donor support especially the Global Fund and the United States Government’s President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), the Plan prioritizes the continued engagement of civil society organizations (CSOs) as partners in both decision-making and service delivery, as critical for a sustainable and effective HIV response. The epidemic has had a disproportionate effect on key populations, which are defined as men who have sex with men (MSM), sex workers (SW), transgender people, persons who use drugs (PWUD) and miners and loggers. CSOs have played an important role in reaching these key population groups and providing most required prevention services. These services include the provision of HIV/STI information, risk reduction counselling, HIV testing, STI screening, condom and lubricant distribution, psychosocial support, social services, referral for ART, STI, TB, community, and palliative care. More specifically, care and support services being provided by CSOs include referrals or accompanied access to health services, adherence support, and home-based and community care. CSOs also play meaningful roles in advocacy, decision-making, and oversight of the national response. The withdrawal of Global Fund and PEPFAR, the main funders of CSOs, impedes this critical work. To address the abovementioned challenge, the National Aids Programme Secretariat (NAPS) initiated a social contracting initiative between CSOs and the Government of Guyana (GOG). A pilot run of this initiative was undertaken in 2019 and it is envisioned that it would be sustained in the future. A review of the pilot noted several recommendations for streamlining and improvement in this CSO/GOG collaboration. One such area is to strengthen the CSOs capacity to engage in social contracting. Being LGBTI+ in Guyana Research and Dialogue Reports Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI+) people in the Caribbean face legal, social, and economic barriers to full inclusion and enjoyment of their human rights. Despite positive developments regionally, including increased attention and funding to advance inclusion and the development of anti-discrimination policy and law, there remains much work to be done to guarantee equality of LGBTI+ people under the law and to ensure protection from violence and discrimination as well as equal access to services. Punitive laws and practices have a critical impact on the enjoyment of human rights, health as well as on social and economic development more broadly. Punitive laws, policies and practices contribute to pervasive stigma and discrimination, which can lead to hate crime, police abuse, torture and ill-treatment, and family and community violence. In recognition of the importance of acting on these issues and the connection between securing the rights of LGBTI+ people and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals for the region, the Being LGBTI in the Caribbean (BLIC) Project was developed. The project aims to enhance knowledge, partnerships, and capacities of LGBTI+ communities, civil society and States to reduce human rights violations and negative attitudes towards LGBTI+ people in the Caribbean. There is country level focus in Guyana, Jamaica, Barbados, St. Lucia and Grenada, the Dominican Republic and Haiti, as well as regional activities and dialogues. The project seeks to increase access to justice for LGBTI+ persons, through the promotion of LGBTI+ inclusive public policies; increased representation of LGBTI+ in national and regional fora; and by addressing stigma and discrimination. In Guyana, the project is seeking to conduct a desk research as well as a national dialogue on Being LGBTI+. The information gleaned from these two activities will be useful in offering a complete account of the impact of discrimination, exclusion, and vulnerability on Guyanese LGBTI+ people. It will form a comprehensive body of work that can be shared with partners and policy makers to introduce/shape legislative and policy reforms.
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