The Expanding CBO: Recognizing Need and Optimizing Resources
Internationally, the HIV/AIDS epidemic mandated an interest in hitherto ignored,marginalized groups such as Men who have Sex with Men (MSM), sex workers and intravenous substance users. In the last ten years, research has identified Indian MSM as a significant “high risk” group, with a HIV prevalence rate of 6.4% compared to the 0.36% of the general population (NACO,2010). This has forced the Government and international funding agencies to recognize the need for targeted health and social services for MSM (Chakrapani et al., 2002). Despite increased interest, there is a lacuna in the programmatic response to the needs of this community.
Responding to this gap in structural resources Durbar Mahila Swamanaya Committee(DMSC) , a sex workers collective, developed an organizational branch, Anandam, to serve MSM and transgender populations. As a community based organization (CBO), DMSC has mobilized collective identity (Ghose et al.,2008) in a socially marginalized group, while tactfully engaging with the external factors such as the changing politics of funding sources (Swendeman et al., 2009).The inclusion of MSM and transgendered populations in DMSC is an example of CBO expansion in response to community need and thus offers an opportunity to examine strategies which promote community mobilization and organizational sustainability. The research will address important questions about viable organizational planning and implementation in post-colonial settings, such as India.
Methods:
Fifteen in-depth semi structured interviews were conducted with Anandam staff members and peer outreach workers. Participants were asked about their involvement in Anandam and strategies used at various stages of its implementation. Analysis of project documents, pamphlets, reports, and meetings notes was conducted to access additional dimensions of organizational development. Content and thematic analysis of the documents and transcribed interviews was employed.
Results:
The analysis revealed the following strategies used by Anandam and DMSC:
1. Maximizing present resources: utilizing its present infrastructure, DMSC provided material support like medical and legal aid to improve the MSM community’s quality of life. The project actively encouraged and formalized the extant networks of peer support in the MSM community by recruiting peer educators and forming local support groups.2. Articulating solidarity: by emphasizing the common experiences of stigma and deprivation the project garnered mutual support between two similarly marginalized yet distinct groups, like female sex workers and MSM. 3. Strategic engagement with funding: by capitalizing on the shift in national and global funding priorities which increasingly favored HIV intervention with MSM the project tapped into a new financial source.
Implication:
DMSC was able to expand and incorporate a new population in response to community needs and emerging resources. This kind of dynamic flexibility and creativity is crucial for the sustainability of a CBO. For international social work, this signals the importance of strategically aligning universal donor preference trends with indigenous need. Further research should explore the effects of this extension of services and collective identity mobilization on health behavior outcomes of MSM, such as condom use and the community’s response to psychosocial dynamics of stigma and discrimination.