Iris Angola Association (Portuguese: Associação Íris Angola) is the first legally registered LGBTI

non-governmental organization A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...

in Angola. The organization was founded in 2013 and became legally registered in 2018. It is headquartered in

Luanda Luanda ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Angola, largest city of Angola. It is Angola's primary port, and its major industrial, cultural and urban centre. Located on Angola's northern Atlantic coast, Luanda is Ang ...

with offices in

Benguela Benguela (; Umbundu: Luombaka) is a city in western Angola, capital of Benguela Province. Benguela is one of Angola's most populous cities with a population of 555,124 in the city and 561,775 in the municipality, at the 2014 census. History Por ...

and

Lubango Lubango, formerly known as Sá da Bandeira, is a municipality in Angola, capital of the Huíla Province, with a population of 914,456 in 2022. The city center had a population of 600,751 in 2014 making it the second-most populous city in Angola a ...

Activities

Iris Angola is a gay rights lobbying group. It provides support through human rights advocacy as well as the prevention, treatment and care for

HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of '' Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the im ...

. Director Carlos Fernandes participated in a Facebook live event with the U.S. embassy in 2021. With the support of the

United Nations Development Program The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is a United Nations agency tasked with helping countries Poverty reduction, eliminate poverty and achieve Sustainable development, sustainable economic growth and Human development (economics), hu ...

, Iris Angola launched a photo exhibition called "See Beyond Your Prejudice" in 2022. Iris Angola organized the first Miss Trans Angola pageant in 2024. That year, it also argued in for the inclusion on a sexual orientation questionnaire on the country's census.

References

LGBTQ organizations based in Africa LGBTQ in Angola 2013 establishments in Angola Organizations based in Angola {{LGBTQ-org-stub