The closures have halted outreach, reduced targeted HIV services and eliminated safe spaces that once provided confidential counselling, HIV prevention and access to treatment. Rights groups warn that the impact is immediate and severe, undermining both public health and community dignity.
Speaking to Channel Africa on Thursday, Executive Director of the Centre for the Development of People (CEDEP), Gift Trapence, said four clinics and several mobile units have been forced to close.
These were the only LGBTIQ-specific health facilities in the country, offering HIV testing, sexually transmitted infections screening, antiretroviral therapy and mental health support. More than 10 000 people relied on these services, including 7 000 individuals on antiretroviral therapy treatment.
Trapence explained that the sudden nature of the cuts left both staff and clients unprepared. “We were told to stop working immediately. There was no proper transitioning to public health facilities, and we had no time to prepare the communities we serve,” he said. CEDEP now estimates that 90% of individuals who were on treatment cannot be traced.
He added that mainstream health facilities are not adequately trained or equipped to treat LGBTIQ+ patients, resulting in heightened stigma, discrimination and worsening health outcomes.
“These centres were safe spaces,” he said. “People accessed mental health counselling, HIV testing, and interventions when facing violence. Now those spaces are gone.”
The closures have also affected wider groups, including women and children, as the government is forced to prioritise limited health resources. Trapence said the sudden cuts sent a damaging signal that key populations are less deserving of care, creating backlash from some service providers and policymakers.
He warned that Malawi’s chronic underfunding of health services has intensified the crisis.
“Our health budgets are below Abuja Declaration commitments. Domestic financing is not enough,” he said, adding that civil society has urged government to explore new funding sources such as targeted levies on alcohol or fuel.
Public-private partnerships, he noted, remain underdeveloped due to a lack of policy frameworks guiding corporate social responsibility.
“We need robust policies to bring in the private sector,” he said. “Right now, we are in a crisis because there are no comprehensive services for LGBTIQ+ communities.”
Trapence stressed that without urgent intervention, Malawi risks rising HIV infections, treatment interruptions and preventable deaths among already marginalised groups.
–ChannelAfrica–
