\n<\/p>\n
The State Department and the Inter-American Foundation (IAF) funded programs to help LGBTQ refugee entrepreneurs, teach LGBTQ refugees how to use computers, and support Costa Rica\u2019s status as a country granting asylum to LGBTQ individuals.<\/p>\n
The grant<\/a> for teaching computer skills was given to the Instituto Sobre Migracion y Refugio LGBTIQ Para Centroamerica, or the Institute on Migration and LGBTIQ Refugees for Central America, and totaled $24,950.<\/p>\n Another grant<\/a> costing $24,950, to conclude on March 31, 2024, was given to a project seeking to promote \u201csocial integration and economic inclusion of the LGBTIQ+ migrants, refugees, and host populations, with emphasis to individuals with disabilities, and micro and small entrepreneurs.<\/p>\n The Inter-American Foundation also gave $228,300 to the Instituto Sobre Migracion y Refugio LGBTIQ Para Centroamerica, the same group teaching computer skills, to support the asylum of LGBTQ individuals.<\/p>\n Cost Rica is the \u201conly Central American country that grants asylum due to persecution of a person\u2019s sexual orientation and gender identity,\u201d a description<\/a> reads. \u201cIt has increasingly become a host country for LGBTIQ+ refugees from the Nothern Triangle, Panama, Venezuela, and other countries.\u201d<\/p>\n The IAF \u201csupports community-led approaches to promoting economic integration and creating inclusive societies in Latin America and the Caribbean,\u201d the description adds.<\/p>\n American Faith previously reported<\/a> that the State Department is funding a dancing program to \u201cuplift transgender and gender diverse\u201d people in Peru.<\/p>\n \u201cBallroom Saves Lives: Resiliency and Wellness in Peru Ballroom\u201d is a winner of the Citizen Diplomacy Action Fund (CDAF), a competition that\u00a0focuses<\/a>\u00a0on \u201cstrengthening democratic institutions and fighting disinformation,\u201d \u201cprotecting the environment,\u201d \u201chuman rights, refugees, and migrants,\u201d \u201cbuilding community through arts, sports, language, and technology,\u201d and \u201cfostering alumni network development.\u201d<\/p>\n The ballroom program connects LGBTQ individuals with medical resources and builds relationships with health providers.<\/p>\n \u201cBallroom is a performance art style and culture consisting of dance, modeling, and community engagement that began in the Black and Latinx LGBTQIA+ community,\u201d a description reads.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n