Mplus Background

Mplus is a non-profit organization based in Chiang-Mai, Thailand, which works primarily to promote sexual health for men who have sex with men, MSM.  Mplus was founded by USAID in 2004, after reports on HIV/AIDS showed increased prevalence of the disease among the MSM population in Northern Thailand.  Although male sex workers (self-identified as gay or heterosexual) are their most important target group, Mplus also serves the lesbian and transgender communities, trying to improve the quality of life of high-risks populations at large. 
Each of these groups is addressed on its own through a variety of focused interventions and outreach. Mplus runs a wide span of activities such as workshops, English education for male sex workers, and handing out condoms and information at places where men meet to have sex (public parks, public toilets, gay saunas, gay bars, gay massage parlors, Chiang Mai stadium, Mae Ping riverside, etc.) They have also had activities with local schools and the Chiang Mai University informing about safe sex, fighting stigma against sexual minorities and promoting familiarity with condoms, by making condom pins and condom flowers. At its drop-in center, they offer face-to-face counseling; they also run a hotline for phone counseling and have plans to set up an online counseling service. Most recently, Mplus has also established a partnership with the Chiang Mai MSM Clinic, trying to identify health concerns facing MSM and encouraging individuals to get tested for HIV and other STIs.
Mplus currently consists of about 1000 registered members, and is run by a staff team of about 20 people, helped by various international volunteers and other human rights workers.

Mplus Objective

The object of this project is to strengthen and support gay bisexual and transsexual youth in their self-esteem and personal identities while decreasing stigma and discrimination by actively involving them in activities and educating them on sexual health. Consequently, sexual high-risk behaviour will decrease; condom will use increase; and gay, bi and transgender youth will be able to enjoy their human rights.

Mplus Strategy

The strategy used is based on the Mpowerment project, modified to suite the Thai cultural setting. The Mpowerment project has proven to be an effective intervention model in the US. The project will be modified in such a way it will be culturally sensitive, the Thai cultural setting would make it very difficult to do outreach to young people openly and direct talking about sex and distributing condoms. Instead the project aims to include the safe sex message in a wider support structure provided by the project. For more information about the Mpowerment project see www.effectiveinterventions.org .

The Mpowerment project has nine Core Elements, creating an intervention with the goal of establishing a community organizing process for diffusion of risk-reduction norms. It seeks to establish and maintain communitywide changes that pass on a healthy sexual behaviour as the norm, by letting the participants carry out four integrated activities. The Core Elements are:

1. Hire two Program Coordinators to oversee the project.
2. Recruit a group of Volunteers to help deliver services and to make important decisions about the program.
3. Set up a Core Group of approximately 10-15 members of the target group, to plan and carry out project activities.
4. Establish a dedicated project space where many of the activities will be held.
5. Carry out Formal Outreach, including educational activities and social events.
6. Conduct Informal Outreach to influence behavioural change.
7. Organize peer-led Discussion Groups and Training.
8. Run a Publicity Campaign about the project
9. Convene as a Community Advisory Board.

3.1 The Coordinators:
The Main Coordinator will oversee the project, funding and budget, all external contacts, setting up the community advisory board, and recruitment, background checks and training of volunteers. The Main Coordinator will also hold several focus discussions to identify the social structures of the target group. The Assistant Coordinator will be a Thai national in charge of the Volunteers and Core Group. He or she will organize the activities and necessary materials and ensure that implementation will be possible. Both Coordinators will have experience with HIV prevention and community building, and will have extensive knowledge about the relevant Thai cultural issues faced by young gay and transgendered youth.

3.2 The Volunteers:
The Coordinators will recruit a group of approximately ten Volunteers to function as youth leaders in activities. The aim is to recruit a diverse group of strong individuals, who will be able to make important project-related decisions according to the principles and rules of the Mplus Youth Project. The Volunteers will be young men, women and transgendered individuals who are secure in their sexual and gender identities. They will be suitable role-models for the Core Group and support, but not lead, them in implementing planned activities. The Volunteers will be recruited at local universities and through existing Mplus members. They will all be asked to sign a morality contract, ensuring that they will join the project for at least six months. In exchange they will receive training, learn new skills and conduct meaningful and interesting work. The Volunteers will create a warm, appreciative, and socially welcoming atmosphere.

3.3 The Core Group:
Mplus already has established contact with several gay youth networks in Chiang Mai. The Core Group will be recruited through these contacts and through Mplus members. The aim is to employ members from different social settings, making it possible to reach out to several segments of society. Mplus also has an established relationship with local schools, offering another channel for recruitment. With the guidance of the Volunteers and Coordinators, the Core Group themselves will make decisions about the implementation of the project. The Core Group will support and encourage each other as well as their peer. They will decide and plan productive activities together with the Volunteers, and invite their friends to join. The Core Group will not be permanent, but will change over time, as new members join and others leave.

3.4 The Space:
Mplus has a drop-in centre which offers members an internet café, a library with gay and sexual health literature and movies, a meeting and activity room, a TV-corner, and two days a week, they offer a free clinic for HIV and STD testing and counselling. It is still uncertain if the free clinic will be officially available for the underaged members as it is maintained by the Thai government, or if the project will have to rely on referral to private clinics. If the members of the project will not be able to utilize the already existing health services of Mplus, the Coordinators will ensure an effective referral system for the Members. If needed, staff or Volunteers will take the members to the clinic and support them throughout the process.

3.5 Formal Outreach:
A major difference from the Mpowerment project is that in a Thai context, formal outreach cannot explicitly promote safe sex and condom use to youth. Instead the Mplus Youth Project will strive to eliminate the social and behavioural structures that facilitate high-risk behaviour. The project will host interesting and entertaining activities to attract members of the target group and create a community where high-risk norms are reduced. As mentioned before there is an urgent need to work with youth as they often engage in high-risk behaviour. The events should be diverse in order to cater to the diversity of the target group, with activities ranging from make-up lessons to movie nights and sports. Outreach will also function as a channel of recruitment for new members and participants. The outreach will empower volunteers as well as create opportunities for positive peer influence.

3.6 Informal Outreach:
The Informal Outreach by Core Group members and volunteers will use peer influence to change behavioural norms among the Youth Groups members’ friends and social networks. It is achieved by non-judgemental and supportive peer interactions and reinforced through other project activities.

3.7 Group Discussions / Training sessions:
Every two weeks a Group Discussion or Training Session will be held, addressing important issues regarding young gay and transgendered individuals. The sessions will be led by well trained staff and volunteers and, occasionally, guest speakers will be invited. These sessions will offer members opportunities to get more knowledge about topics such as Human Rights, safe sex, LGBT (Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transpersons) rights and LGBT movements and will deal with both international and local issues.

3.8 Publicity Campaign:
The Projects Publicity Campaign aims to reach all members of the target group, by creating attractive and informative materials to distribute in areas where the target group socializes, i.e. schools, shopping malls, and Internet cafes. Some of the material will also be specifically aimed at schools, using Mplus’s already established contacts; for example, there will be leaflets available at the school nurse’s office. The members will also produce a monthly newsletter, giving information about the project’s activities as well as other issues they find relevant, such as short stories by the members or news regarding LGBT-issues.

3.9 Community Advisory Board:
We will set up a Community Advisory Board consisting of members of the local community who are knowledgeable about the target group, HIV prevention, Public Health services and the educational sector in Chiang Mai. The members will represent the Educational sector, Health sector, local HIV NGOs and youth projects. They will function as a resource for the project, giving advice on Youth Group activities. The community advisory board will hold monthly meetings where the progress and future activities of the project are discussed.

Mplus Strategy

4.1 Confidentiality:
As the project deals with sensitive issues and members might not be overt about their sexual orientation, a strict confidentiality system will be in place. All volunteers and staff will be required to sign a confidentiality statement before joining activities. All data and information about members, such as attendance records or training sheets, will be stored in a secure location where only the coordinators can access it.

4.2 Volunteers and staff:
Before joining the project all staff and volunteers will be subject to a background check and thoroughly interviewed. A four eyes principle is effective, which demands that volunteers and staff never are alone with members. Staff and volunteers will not be allowed to socialize with members, outside of the project.

The responsibilities of the volunteers will be clearly stated in a moral contract they will be asked to sign when joining the project. This contract will also ask them to volunteer for the project for at least six months. In exchange volunteers will get appropriate training in HIV prevention strategies, Human Rights, Sexual Rights, Youth activities and so on. All training will be documented. After fulfilling their six months all volunteers have the right to attain a personal certificate stating their responsibilities and training in the project.

4.3 Referrals
Mplus is prepared with an extensive referral system to partner NGOs and CBOs, health clinics and other services available in Chiang Mai. If a member needs any support which this project can not offer, the project will ensure that they get contact with a place where they can get the support needed.