Before the accident, Phiri himself had volunteered as an outreach worker for CEDEP, so he understood that in a country where homosexual activity is illegal, the clinic was a lifeline.
BLANTYRE, Malawi—Earlier this year, McDonald Phiri crashed his bike near his home in southern Malawi. Laid up for months, the 49-year-old relied on an outreach worker to deliver the HIV prevention medicine that he took daily. This service was provided through a specialized clinic run by the Centre for the Development of People (CEDEP), a group that supports gay men, such as Phiri, as well as transgender women.
BLANTYRE, Malawi—Earlier this year, McDonald Phiri crashed his bike near his home in southern Malawi. Laid up for months, the 49-year-old relied on an outreach worker to deliver the HIV prevention medicine that he took daily. This service was provided through a specialized clinic run by the Centre for the Development of People (CEDEP), a group that supports gay men, such as Phiri, as well as transgender women.
Before the accident, Phiri himself had volunteered as an outreach worker for CEDEP, so he understood that in a country where homosexual activity is illegal, the clinic was a lifeline.
“We, the MSM [men who have sex with men], it’s tough in our country to be free,” said Phiri, who requested to use a pseudonym to protect himself from retribution. “Here in Malawi, it’s tough even to go to the hospital. Some of the health workers are just talking shit about you.”
At the start of the year, CEDEP operated four drop-in centers, including the one that Phiri used. Almost all of the funding was provided by the U.S. initiative PEPFAR, or the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief.
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