Mental health consultant for Key Populations coming out guide

The Arab Foundation for Freedoms and Equality is a regional organization dedicated to encourage and support sexual health, sexuality, gender and bodily rights movements in the Middle East and North Africa through capacity building, knowledge production, protection and advocacy. Established in 2009, AFE has been a driver of LGBTIQ+ rights in the MENA region supporting national organizations and local, regional and global advocacy to improve the quality of life of marginalized communities in the MENA region.

The M-Coalition (MCO) is the only regional network devoted to promote and support LGBTIQ health in the Middle East and North Africa Region (MENA) and is the health department for AFE MENA. MCO was founded in 2014 and works through advocacy, information exchange, knowledge production, networking, and capacity building. The M-Coalition strives to involve members of the LGBTQ community and people living with HIV and other Key Populations at all levels of its strategy, policy development and implementation, and internal governing processes.

Project Description

The MENA region remains one of the regions in the world with constant discrimination against Key population especially LGBTQI+ in particular trans* minorities with many people facing problems after coming out or even are afraid to come out because of the social, financial and even security challenges in their countries.

M-Coalition has set out to create a guide for these populations targeting age groups from 19 years old to mid-twenties where most individuals come-out during this period without the proper knowledge or planning, which makes them even vulnerable to different kinds of injustices and problems.

This guide will be a simplified way to explain different situations on different levels, from family to surroundings and even to the wider community. It will share different stories and cases from the MENA region of other individuals to come out to learn from their experiences alongside different reactions one might face and to understand the background of these reactions in order to work around them to come out safely. 

Job Description

A consultant will be hired for a period of 20 May 2021 to 30 Aug 2021 to write the guide.

Objectives:

• Online consultation with KPs.

• Compile data from interviews / FGD.
• Draft and write the guide.

Expected outcome: A Manual highlighting the aspects of coming out for the Key population in MENA stating  different situations.

Qualifications of the consultant

• Mental health consultant or psychologist with relevant experience with Key population and LGBTQI+.  
• 3 to 4 years of experience.
• Good reporting  and analytical skills .
• Flexible and can work under pressure.
• Good language skills (Arabic, French, English).

Remuneration

 $ 3000 ( Three thousand US dollars only)

Timeline

The Guide should be launched on 30th of  August 2021 .​​​​​​​

Reporting lines

 The consultant shall report directly to Leah Zraika; Trans* portfolio; M-coalition.