India: At the National Transgender Summit, UNODC joins partners in catalyzing action for inclusive healthcare and policies

New Delhi, India/02 April 2024: Globally, transgender individuals confront daily hurdles stemming from societal stigma and institutional neglect. Despite legal advances, they remain marginalized, facing limited access to education, employment, and healthcare. In India, a National Transgender Summit brought together key stakeholders to reflect on challenges faced by transgender communities, address entrenched disparities and advocate for inclusive policies that leave no one behind.

UNODC joined the India HIV/AIDS Alliance, the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO), the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MOSJE) and other partners in convening the Summit, reflecting on gender barriers, health, and overall development concerns of the transgender communities.

Over 124 individuals from diverse backgrounds called for collective commitment to address pressing challenges such as equitable access to livelihood opportunities, healthcare accessibility, substance use, HIV/AIDS and healthcare in prisons and gender-based violence, among others.

Participants highlighted the urgent need to address stigma, provide specialized healthcare, and ensure safety for transgender individuals in closed settings such as prisons. Recommendations emerging from discussions included the need for higher recruitment of officials from the transgender community, discussions on intersectionality, and the implementation of standard operating procedures for jail authorities.

UNODC’s Criminal Justice Expert Ms. Seema Joshi Arya emphasized key initiatives aimed at addressing the unique challenges faced by transgender individuals in carceral environments: including sensitising staff on their challenges, inclusive healthcare provision, HIV/AIDS services with confidentiality, promoting gender-responsive services, and fostering inter-departmental collaboration.

She also introduced UNODC's "Operationalizing Essential HIV Services for Transgenders in Prisons and Other Closed Settings" SOP, aiming to ensure specialised care for transgender individuals in closed settings.

In addition to healthcare, discussions also focused on the importance of tailored policies to ensure the well-being and safety of transgender individuals in closed settings. The Summit provided a critical platform for stakeholders to exchange ideas, share best practices, and formulate actionable recommendations.

The activity contributed to SDG 3, SDG 5, SDG 11, SDG 16 and SDG 17: https://sdg-tracker.org/